Immortality Cultivation

Chapter 256: Power [2]

In the center of the basin within the "Unknown Forbidden Land", the battle had reached a fever pitch. Fang Hao was covered in blood, his clothes in tatters, with over a dozen wounds on his body—some so deep that bone was visible, others scorched by magma, slashed by bone spurs, or eroded by Yin Qi, making him look incredibly wretched. However, the hand holding the axe remained steady, and his eyes grew brighter and brighter, like burning flames.

The "battle heaven axe" in his hand seemed tireless; every swing carried the power to split mountains and shatter rocks. The dark gold blade was stained with pitch-black demon blood, dark red magma, and bone powder, yet under the baptism of battle, it appeared increasingly ancient and heavy, and its unyielding Battle Intent became more solid. Fang Hao could even feel the battle axe absorbing the Killing Intent and Battle Intent dissipating during the fight, and the nine crack patterns on the axe head seemed to glow ever so slightly.

"Only two left!" With one swing, Fang Hao forced back the lunging "Giant Skeleton Statue", then followed with a backhand strike at the "Shadow Demon" attacking from the side, forcing it to retreat. He gasped for air, his chest heaving violently. After a continuous high-intensity struggle, he had slain the Demon Ape and then, risking a heavy injury to trade a life for a life, used an "Ice Fire Star Shattering Slash" in coordination with the "battle heaven axe" to forcefully cleave that frenzied Magma Lizard in half from head to tail, finally dealing with the second powerful enemy.

But the price was that his left shoulder had been struck by the Magma Lizard’s tail in its death throes, cracking the bone and leaving half his body numb. The Qi within him was nearly exhausted, and he was only holding on through the support of the Chaos Derivation Art and the weak Battle Intent fed back by the "battle heaven axe".

The remaining "Giant Skeleton Statue" and "Shadow Demon", although both were injured (the Giant Skeleton Statue had lost an arm, and the Shadow Demon had been scorched by Battle Intent), were in much better condition than he was. In particular, that "Shadow Demon" was like a ghost, its attacks insidious and its constant harassment draining his mind and physical strength. Meanwhile, the "Giant Skeleton Statue" was like a moving city wall, with astonishing defense and terrifying power; facing it head-on made Fang Hao suffer immensely.

"I can’t let this drag on; I must end this quickly!" Fang Hao knew his condition wouldn’t last much longer. Once his strength was spent, it would be a dead end.

A flash of ruthlessness appeared in his eyes as he locked his gaze on the relatively slow but most heavily defended "Giant Skeleton Statue". This fellow was a skeleton, so the Earth Core Flame Fire and "Earth Fire Burning Body" had limited restraining effects on it, and the power of "Cold Ice Bone Erosion" couldn’t freeze its ancient bones. Only the sharpness and power of the "battle heaven axe" could cause effective damage to it.

"I’m going all out!" Fang Hao let out a low growl, no longer paying attention to the Shadow Demon’s ghost claws attacking from behind like maggots on a bone. He poured all his remaining Qi, Physical Body strength, ice and fire power, and even that wisp of "war soul" will from his Divine Soul into the "battle heaven axe"! He gripped the axe with both hands and kicked off the ground forcefully. The ground exploded, and his figure shot forward like a cannonball, carrying an indomitable and desperate Aura of death as he lunged straight for the "Giant Skeleton Statue"! His target—the chest area made of countless fused bones, which looked the hardest but was actually the energy core!

The Shadow Demon’s ghost claws raked fiercely across Fang Hao’s back, leaving several bone-deep bloody gashes as cold ghost Qi surged frantically into his body. Fang Hao let out a muffled groan, blood overflowing from the corners of his mouth, but his figure didn’t stop for a moment; his eyes were fixed only on the approaching skeletal chest!

The "Giant Skeleton Statue" also seemed to sense the terror of Fang Hao’s life-risking strike. It let out a silent roar, and its remaining massive bone palm, along with the jagged bone of its broken arm, simultaneously swatted and stabbed toward Fang Hao! It intended to crush and impale him in mid-air!

"Shatter—for me!"

At the moment the bone palm and bone spurs reached him, Fang Hao let out a final roar! The "battle heaven axe" erupted with an unprecedented dark gold light, and above the blade, a blurry phantom that towered between heaven and earth faintly appeared, mimicking the motion of swinging the axe downward!

BOOM—!!!

An earth-shattering explosion! The battle axe slammed fiercely into the chest of the "Giant Skeleton Statue"! Violent power erupted as the dark gold Battle Intent and the Giant Skeleton Statue’s death energy clashed and annihilated each other frantically!

Crack! Crack-crack-crack—!

A dense series of tooth-aching cracking sounds rang out! Centered on the point where the battle axe struck, countless cracks spread across the "Giant Skeleton Statue"’s entire body like a spiderweb! The bone palm it had swung down and the bone shards it had thrust out stopped powerlessly just an inch from Fang Hao’s body, and then, along with its torso, they shattered violently, turning into countless broken bone fragments that collapsed like a landslide, piling into a mountain of bones!

Fang Hao was also sent flying by the immense force of the explosion, like a kite with its string cut. He sprayed a large amount of blood in the air and slammed heavily onto the ground dozens of yards away, rolling a dozen more times before stopping. The "battle heaven axe" flew out of his hand and landed slanted in a nearby rock, still humming and trembling.

He lay on the ground, feeling as if every bone in his body had fallen apart, with pain everywhere. His Qi was completely drained, and his Divine Soul sent waves of needle-like pain from overexertion, causing his vision to black out intermittently. Where the Shadow Demon had clawed his back, the freezing ghost Qi was frantically eroding him, clashing with the Earth Core Flame Fire and Chaos Qi in his body, bringing a torture of both ice and fire. His left shoulder bone was cracked, and his right arm was numb and devoid of sensation from that final strike.

"There’s... one more..." Fang Hao struggled to lift his head and look nearby. That Shadow Demon had clearly been frightened by the earth-shattering strike and the destruction of the "Giant Skeleton Statue". Its figure coalesced not far away, its two points of eerie green ghost fire flickering uncertainly as it looked at the fallen Fang Hao, whose breath was extremely weak, and then at the "battle heaven axe" stuck in the ground still emitting a dangerous Aura. It seemed to hesitate whether to move in for the kill or if it feared Fang Hao had one last desperate strike left.

Fang Hao knew this was the final chance. Enduring the intense pain, he used his left hand, which could still move slightly, to tremblingly pull out the last few Medicinal Pills from his robes—pills for recovering Qi, healing, and suppressing the Divine Soul. Regardless of what they were, he stuffed them all into his mouth, then desperately circulated the Chaos Derivation Art to absorb the medicinal power while simultaneously communicating with the "battle heaven axe" nearby.

The Shadow Demon seemed to make up its mind. Those two points of eerie green ghost fire suddenly brightened, and its figure turned into a cloud of black smoke once more, lunging toward the fallen Fang Hao! This time, it wanted to completely devour this human’s Divine Soul and flesh, as well as that terrifying axe!

Seeing the black smoke about to envelop Fang Hao.

At this critical juncture, a sharp light exploded in Fang Hao’s eyes, and his trembling right hand suddenly clenched!

Buzz—!

The "battle heaven axe" stuck in the rock emitted an earth-shaking hum and turned into a streak of dark gold light, flying back into Fang Hao’s hand in an instant! Using his last bit of strength, Fang Hao gripped the battle axe with one hand and swung it fiercely upward at the lunging black smoke!

"Begone—!"

The dark gold axe light was like the dawn tearing through the darkness! Although its power was far less than before, the unyielding and tragic Battle Intent contained within it caused the Shadow Demon to let out a terrified shriek! What it feared most was this kind of extremely Yang and rigid power, filled with righteous will!

Sizzle—!

The black smoke was struck by the axe light and, like boiling water poured on snow, instantly dissipated by more than half, revealing a blurry, constantly twisting shadow core within. The shadow emitted a shrill scream, and the remaining portion dared not stay a moment longer. Like a stray dog, it fled frantically toward the depths of the gray mist and vanished in the blink of an eye.

Only when the Shadow Demon’s Aura had completely disappeared did Fang Hao’s tense nerves suddenly relax. He could no longer hold on; his vision went black, and still clutching the "battle heaven axe", he completely fell unconscious. However, a hint of a relieved, utterly exhausted smile remained on his face.

He won... though it was tragic, though he nearly died, in the end... he won.

The center of the basin returned to a deathly silence. There were only the messy traces of battle, the scattered remains of monsters, and that dark gold battle axe stuck in the ground, guarding its unconscious master, silently telling of the thrilling bloodbath that had just occurred.

Outside the entrance of the Savage Secret Realm.

Over a month had passed since the Secret Realm opened. Of the thousands of Cultivators who had initially poured into the Secret Realm, more than half had already come out one after another. Some were beaming with joy, having gained much; some were dejected, having gained nothing; and even more had stayed forever in that savage land.

The area outside the Secret Realm entrance was no longer as empty as before. Major powers had sent people to station there, receiving their own disciples while gathering information and trading spoils. The most eye-catching were the camps of the Sun Family and the Zhao Family.

The Sun Family’s camp had an oppressively heavy atmosphere. Inside the tent, the Sun Family Third Elder’s face was as dark as water as he listened to the continuous reports from his subordinates. When Sun Tianqi was found, he was on the verge of death with more than half of his Dao foundation destroyed. Although he was rushed back to Heavenly Capital for treatment, his future was completely ruined. As for Sun Tianlin, along with several elite disciples, they had completely lost contact after entering the Secret Realm. Only one or two Sun Family disciples who had escaped mentioned that Fang Hao had a nascent soul puppet and had killed Sun Tianlin and his group of experts. This was an unbearable blow and humiliation for the Sun Family.

"Is there still no news of that little bastard Fang Hao?" The Third Elder’s voice was like a cold wind.

"Reporting to the Third Elder, our people have been closely monitoring the Secret Realm exit, but no trace of Fang Hao has been found. He might still be hiding deep in the Secret Realm, or he might... already be dead inside," a subordinate answered cautiously.

"I want him found, dead or alive!" The Third Elder gnashed his teeth. "Keep watching! Send more people! As soon as he comes out, capture and kill him immediately! Also, double the bounty! Anyone who provides accurate news or clues about Fang Hao will be heavily rewarded!"

"Yes!"

The Zhao Family’s camp was similarly unfriendly. Zhao Wuji had returned heavily injured shortly after entering the Secret Realm. Although his life was saved, his injuries were extremely severe. He only told the Family that he had encountered a powerful Demon Beast, never mentioning the matter of Fang Hao (it was too embarrassing). However, the Zhao Family had also obtained some information through other channels. They were full of hostility and curiosity toward Fang Hao, a Loose Cultivator who could make Zhao Wuji suffer a setback, and they also sent people to monitor the exit.

Besides these two families, other powers were also secretly paying attention to Fang Hao. After all, a Loose Cultivator who could defeat Sun Tianqi and Zhao Wuji and was rumored to possess a nascent soul puppet was hard not to notice.

Everyone believed that if Fang Hao was still alive, he would eventually have to come out through this exit. They were like a group of patient hunters, waiting with their nets for that "prey" who might already be scarred but was still of immense value.

No one knew that the "prey" they were waiting for was currently unconscious in the deepest and most dangerous "Unknown Forbidden Land" of the Secret Realm, with an ancient battle axe that had just drunk its fill of demon blood and was beginning to show its edge stuck beside him.

Nor did anyone know that when this "prey" recovered from his injuries, gripped that battle axe, and walked out again, what kind of storm he would bring to the world outside the Secret Realm.