Immortality Cultivation

Chapter 233: Unconscious Sun Tianqi

Fang Hao looked at the face on the ground, twisted from excessive blood loss and pain, yet still recognizable, and his mind went a bit blank.

Sun Tianqi?!

How could it be this bastard?! Shouldn’t he be all over the Secret Realm looking for revenge against him? How did he end up in this godforsaken place? And wounded so badly, lying unconscious right at the entrance of this stone gate?

Sun Tianqi’s face was as pale as paper, his lips were dark blue, and his breathing was so weak it was almost imperceptible. His left arm, which had been crippled by Fang Hao, was still hanging limply, but even more critically, there was a bowl-sized, terrifying wound on his right chest near the shoulder! The flesh of the wound was curled back, the edges scorched black, as if struck by some high-temperature or corrosive force. It was deep enough to see the bone, and one could even see the organs inside pulsing faintly, covered in wisps of black Qi! This wound was clearly not an old injury; it was fresh and extremely fatal!

The brocade robe on his body was already tattered, stained with blood and dirt, and the jade pendant at his waist, representing his identity as a member of the Sun Family, was shattered in half. His entire aura was withered to the extreme, and the fluctuations of his Late Golden Core Stage cultivation were so weak they were barely there, like a candle in the wind, ready to extinguish at any moment.

Fang Hao’s first reaction was—finish him off! Strike while he’s down! This bastard had tried to kill him time and time again; now that he was lying here, it was a god-given Opportunity! If he killed him, the Sun Family would lose a Late Golden Core Stage Genius, and he would be rid of a major threat! Moreover, deep in this Secret Realm, no one would know it was him.

A cold glint flashed in his eyes, and the yitian sword appeared in his hand, its tip pointed at Sun Tianqi’s heart. With just a gentle thrust, this nemesis would disappear forever.

However, with the sword tip hovering there, he hesitated.

It wasn’t because he was soft-hearted. He had no affection for the Sun Family or Sun Tianqi; killing him would certainly be justified. What he hesitated about was... how did Sun Tianqi appear here? Looking at these wounds, they were definitely not caused by those gray-white tentacles outside; the wounds caused by that thing didn’t look like this. And how did he pass through that terrifying Corrosive Soul Mist (a name Fang Hao had given the ghostly mist himself) to get here? Relying on his own severely injured body, it was absolutely impossible! Could it be... that the Sun Family had other experts who entered, brought him along, and then encountered a powerful enemy, resulting in Sun Tianqi being severely wounded, his companions all dead, and him luckily escaping to the vicinity of this stone gate?

If there were other Sun Family experts nearby, if he killed Sun Tianqi now and happened to be spotted, or left any traces, it would be an endless feud, and he would immediately attract the pursuit of Sun Family experts. Deep in this Secret Realm, being targeted by one (or more) potentially stronger Sun Family experts was definitely more troublesome than facing that mad dog Zhao Wuji.

Besides... Sun Tianqi lying at the entrance of this stone gate, was it a coincidence, or... did this stone gate, or rather, this ruin of the War Heaven Clan, have special significance to the Sun Family? Did the Sun Family know the secret here? Was Sun Tianqi here specifically for this?

This possibility made Fang Hao’s heart tighten. If the Sun Family also knew about the War Heaven Clan and the fragments, the competition would be even fiercer, and the waters would be even murkier.

To kill, or not to kill?

Fang Hao’s sword tip trembled slightly above Sun Tianqi’s heart, his inner struggle intense. Finally, he exhaled a turbid breath and withdrew his long sword.

Consider yourself lucky. Fang Hao whispered to himself, his gaze cold. It wasn’t that he wouldn’t kill him, but killing him now carried too much risk, and the benefits were not necessarily high. A half-dead Sun Tianqi’s threat level had already dropped to the minimum. Rather than risking killing him now, it was better to first figure out this stone gate and the situation inside. Once he obtained the Opportunity inside and his strength greatly increased, it wouldn’t be too late to kill him. Or, letting him fend for himself and die in this Secret Realm wasn’t bad either.

He crouched down and began to search Sun Tianqi’s body. Soon, he fished out a few Storage Pouches from his bosom, as well as a shattered jade pendant that had lost all its spiritual energy (likely used for life-saving or messaging), and... a black token the size of a palm, made of neither gold nor wood, engraved with the Sun Family emblem and complex runes. The token felt heavy in his hand and emitted faint spatial fluctuations.

Is this... a teleportation token? Or a key to enter a specific area? Fang Hao’s heart stirred. He put away the token and other valuable items (Spirit Stones, Medicinal Pills, several decent Magical Artifacts), leaving only some healing Medicinal Pills (of average quality) and an empty Storage bag, which he threw back onto Sun Tianqi. Since he wasn’t killing him, he cannot let him recover too quickly, lest it cause him trouble. But he cannot let him die right now either; what if this stone gate required Sun Family members or the token to open?

He checked Sun Tianqi’s wound again. A cold, highly corrosive black energy was coiled around the wound, constantly destroying his vitality. This energy... felt a bit familiar; had he felt it somewhere before?

Fang Hao frowned in thought and suddenly remembered that outside the ruins of the Hundred Flowers Mountain Range, when he killed the Black Water Rogue Cultivator, the Netherworld Ghost Claw that the old guy used in his final desperate attempt seemed to carry a similar aura, though it was much purer and more overbearing than this. Could the one who wounded Sun Tianqi be from the Netherworld Sect? Or a Cultivator who practiced a similar evil Cultivation Technique?

It seems that in this Secret Realm, besides the Sun Family and the Zhao Family, there are other powerful characters. Fang Hao’s vigilance increased even more. He dragged Sun Tianqi to the side of the stone gate and placed him against the stone wall to prevent him from being affected by the Corrosive Soul Mist that might seep in from outside, and then ignored him.

His attention was entirely focused on the ancient stone gate before him.

The stone gate was tightly shut, seamless. The complex golden runes on the door were now extremely dim, as if they would extinguish at any moment. Fang Hao tried to push it with his hand, but it didn’t budge. He slashed it twice with the yitian sword, sparks flew, but the stone gate didn’t even leave a white mark; it was terrifyingly sturdy.

How do I open it? Fang Hao frowned. He took out the three battle heaven axe fragments he had obtained. As soon as the fragments approached the stone gate, they emitted a faint hum, the patterns on their surfaces lit up with a faint light, resonating with the runes on the stone gate. The golden light seemed to brighten a fraction, but it was far from enough.

Are the fragments the key? But it seems the quantity is insufficient, or... does it require a specific placement method? Fang Hao tried to place the three fragments in different areas of the stone gate according to the positions where they attracted each other. Where the fragments touched the stone gate, the golden light did indeed brighten a bit, but the stone gate still showed no signs of opening.

It seems that at least more fragments are needed, or... something else. Fang Hao was somewhat disappointed, but it was within his expectations. If it were so easy to open, it wouldn’t be his turn.

He withdrew the fragments and took out the black token he had obtained from Sun Tianqi. When the token approached the stone gate, it had no reaction. He tried sticking the token into a groove-like area in the center of the stone gate; the size was about right, but there was still no movement.

It’s not this. Fang Hao shook his head. This token might be a token for the Sun Family to explore other areas of this Secret Realm, or it might have other uses.

Just when he was at a loss and preparing to meditate to recover before thinking of another way, a change occurred again!

It didn’t come from the stone gate, nor from the Corrosive Soul Mist outside, but... from his bosom!

The star evolution plate, which had been resting quietly, suddenly began to vibrate on its own, emitting a faint starlight that was of the same origin as the golden light of the stone gate but more profound! The needle in the center of the compass spun wildly a few times, then stopped abruptly, pointing to a corner of the stone gate above, where an inconspicuous, particularly complex star pattern was carved!

At the same time, in Fang Hao’s mind, the map of the Secret Realm generated by the star evolution plate, which had always been rather blurry, suddenly became clear for an instant! Right next to the light spot representing his own position, inside the light spot representing the stone gate, a smaller light spot made of starlight appeared, its position exactly coinciding with the star pattern on the stone gate that the compass needle was pointing to!

The star evolution plate... can open this door?! Fang Hao was both shocked and delighted! He immediately took out the star evolution plate and, following the guidance of the needle, carefully placed the compass on the star pattern above the stone gate.

Hum—!!!

The moment the compass touched the stone gate, it erupted with unprecedented brilliant starlight! All the ancient runes on the stone gate, as if injected with new energy, suddenly lit up! The golden light flared, illuminating the space in front of the door brilliantly! Those dim runes seemed to come alive, beginning to flow and combine according to some profound law!

Immediately after, a dull rumble sound, as if coming from the depths of the earth, rang out. The tightly shut ancient stone gate, under Fang Hao’s tense and expectant gaze, slowly opened a crack inward! A breath that was more ancient, vast, and grand, yet also carried an indescribable heavy pressure, surged out from the crack!

The door had opened.