12: The poisonous pool hardens the bones, and the snake shadow lurks

Icy, viscous, highly poisonous!

This was the only sensation Lin Chen had when he regained consciousness. His entire body was submerged in a purplish-black mire emitting a pungent stench. The highly toxic mud, like a maggot clinging to bone, frantically tried to penetrate his broken skin and cracked wounds. The Soul Erosion Guidance’s tearing sensation on his Soul intertwined with the spiritual toxins of the poisonous miasma, forming a bone-deep, will-grinding torture.

“Ugh…” A stifled groan, pushed to its limit, squeezed from the depths of Lin Chen’s throat. He abruptly opened his eyes, seeing before him a mire churning with toxic bubbles and emitting a faint phosphorescent glow. The instinct for survival overrode everything! Almost the instant his consciousness returned, the nearly depleted dark vortex within his Dantian, like ice thrown into boiling oil, suddenly erupted with terrifying devouring power!

Boom—!

The Shadow Erosion Dou Qi spontaneously operated at an unprecedented Peak! It was no longer Lin Chen actively controlling it, but rather this overbearing Cultivation Technique’s instinctive counterattack in a life-or-death situation! The dark Dou Qi, like boiling ink, surged out from every pore of his body, forming a constantly collapsing and expanding miniature black hole vortex, frantically tearing and devouring the ubiquitous toxic energy around him!

“Hiss, hiss, hiss—!”

The terrifying toxic power contained in the mire, the deathly miasma, and even the yin and evil Qi precipitated in the decaying sludge all became targets for the Shadow Erosion vortex! Violent and 雜 energy was forcibly drawn in, brutally ground and decomposed at the center of the vortex! Most of the toxic components were directly annihilated, turning into denser black smoke that merged with the poisonous miasma; while the relatively “pure” yin-cold and corrosive energy Origin, stripped away, was forcibly assimilated and compressed by the vortex, finally transforming into drops of new liquid Shadow Erosion Dou Qi, as viscous as ink, emitting a dual aura of destruction and extreme toxicity!

This process was like having his body repeatedly hammered and refined between a millstone and poisonous flames! His Meridians cracked inch by inch under the impact of the violent energy, and each energy transformation brought excruciating pain like scraping bone and gouging out his heart. The toxins that had invaded his body were treated as “fuel” by the Shadow Erosion Dou Qi, forcibly refined, forming a strange balance that firmly suppressed the Soul Erosion Guidance’s corrosion. But the price was that his skin began to show strange purplish-black patterns, like deeply poisoned veins, emitting an ominous aura.

“Hold on… I must hold on!” Lin Chen gritted his teeth, blood seeping from his gums. He forcibly gathered a trace of his mind, guiding the newly formed, toxic-infused Shadow Erosion Dou Qi to prioritize flowing towards his most severely injured left arm and back.

At the fractured bone in his left arm, the dark Dou Qi, like the finest surgical knife, brutally reset and wrapped the broken bone fragments, greedily devouring clotted blood and necrotic tissue. Excruciating pain was accompanied by a bone-deep itch, as the bone was forcibly healing at an abnormal speed under the stimulation of the highly toxic Dou Qi! The newly formed bone, tempered by both the Shadow Erosion Dou Qi and the poisonous miasma energy, subtly emanated a metallic, dull luster, its strength far surpassing before!

The deep, bone-exposing claw marks on his back were an even more critical “care” target. The lingering yin-cold Death Qi and Hall of Souls claw power, like maggots clinging to bone, were frantically besieged and devoured by the newly formed highly toxic Shadow Erosion Dou Qi! Purplish-black toxin patterns spread along the edges of the wound, bringing a scorching sensation, but the bone-deep yin-cold was being removed bit by bit! The wound visibly closed and scabbed over, covered by a layer of tough purplish-black scab, like snake scales.

Growing stronger! Reborn in destruction!

Lin Chen could clearly feel that after each bout of intense pain, his body became a bit tougher, and the liquid Shadow Erosion Dou Qi in his Dantian became a bit more refined! The fifteen drops of Dou Qi liquid, in the process of frantically devouring toxic energy, not only did not expand in volume but were compressed and purified! Their color gradually changed from deep black to an eerie dark purple, and the energy and toxicity contained in each drop became even more terrifying! His aura, hidden beneath the intense pain and poisonous miasma, was slowly but surely advancing towards the Peak of a Three-Star Dou Zhe, even subtly touching the threshold of Four-Star!

At the same time, the dark-red Hall of Souls chain imprint on his left wrist, stimulated by the extremely concentrated toxic energy and the furious devouring of Shadow Erosion Dou Qi, also underwent a strange change! Along the edges of the imprint, subtle purplish-black patterns quietly spread, like poisonous vines entwining the chain, adding an eerie and sinister toxic aura to the originally cold tracking mark. The tracking aura did not disappear; instead, it became more obscure and more tenacious, as if it had merged with this supremely toxic land.

…

While Lin Chen was undergoing inhuman torture and transformation in the toxic mire, at the other end of the Poisonous Miasma Valley, the battle was nearing its end.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!”

Green flames, like an angry Dragon, raged through the sickly green poisonous miasma. Wherever they passed, toxic mist evaporated, and rocks melted! Xiao Yan, wielding the xuan heavy ruler, with the Green Lotus Core Flame burning fiercely around him, pushed the power of the Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler to its Peak! Each swing of the ruler brought terrifying high temperatures that could scorch mountains and boil seas, forcing the three Hall of Souls Protectors to temporarily avoid its edge.

Yao Lao’s Soul Power, like the most precise radar, enveloped the battlefield, constantly guiding Xiao Yan to evade the opponent’s insidious Soul attacks and search for weaknesses for a counterattack. Qing Lin was firmly protected behind Xiao Yan, her Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils tensely watching the battlefield, her small face pale, but in the depths of her strange pupils, three small green dots subtly rotated, causing the Hall of Souls Soul attacks that approached her to experience a subtle, imperceptible delay and weakening.

“Damn brat! This Heavenly Flame is too overbearing!” The short Protector cursed in exasperation. His Soul Power black mist continuously dissipated under the scorching green flames, consuming a huge amount of his energy.

“The Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils have a suppressive effect on the Soul… we can’t drag this out!” Another Protector’s voice was hoarse, his attacks slightly more hurried.

The leading black-robed Protector’s face under his hood was as dark as water. He hadn’t expected this suddenly appearing young man to be so troublesome. A Dou Master of the Three-Star Realm (Xiao Yan’s apparent strength), relying on the Heavenly Flame and that strange heavy ruler, coupled with the interference from the Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils, was able to contend with their three Dou Ling for so long! What frightened him even more was that the opponent’s combat experience was terrifyingly astute, as if a powerful, invisible Soul was secretly guiding him! He had tried several times to directly attack Xiao Yan’s Soul with Hall of Souls secret techniques, but the opponent had narrowly evaded them with an almost prophetic anticipation!

“We can’t delay any longer! The young man who fused with the source core fragment has completely disappeared! He’s likely been completely swallowed by this toxic swamp!” The leading Protector quickly weighed his options. While the source core fragment was important, this young man with the Heavenly Flame and Triple Jade-Green Snake Flower Pupils was equally valuable, and even more troublesome! Continuing to fight might attract powerful beings from the depths of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, or perhaps the opponent had other trump cards…

“Retreat!” The leading Protector made a decisive decision, letting out a sharp whistle! He abruptly waved his sleeve, unleashing a dense, ink-like torrent of black Soul Power, temporarily forcing back Xiao Yan’s flames, while simultaneously retreating rapidly!

The other two Protectors, hearing the signal, showed no desire to fight, immediately transforming into two black mists and merging into the poisonous miasma, fleeing at extreme speed towards the outer reaches of the valley!

“Trying to leave?!” Xiao Yan’s eyes sharpened, about to pursue.

“Xiao Yan, do not pursue a cornered enemy!” Yao Lao’s voice sounded in time, carrying a hint of solemnity, “These three guys have strange methods, and they might have a trump card to take us down with them. Moreover, in the depths of this poisonous miasma, I sense an extremely obscure but powerful cold aura, as if it’s lurking… This place is not suitable for a long stay!”

Hearing this, Xiao Yan forcibly suppressed the urge to pursue. His xuan heavy ruler landed heavily, and he vigilantly scanned the re-converging dense poisonous miasma. He could feel Yao Lao’s caution.

“Teacher, the cold aura you mentioned…”

“Hmm, very faint, fleeting, like some powerful snake-type Demonic Beast, but not entirely pure… carrying the scent of ancient curses.” Yao Lao pondered, “This place is dangerous, let’s take Qing Lin and leave first.”

Xiao Yan nodded, put away his xuan heavy ruler, and pulled up the still-shaken Qing Lin: “Qing Lin, let’s go, let’s leave this place.”

Qing Lin nodded obediently, but just as she turned, her green eyes instinctively looked again towards the direction of the poisonous miasma where Lin Chen had disappeared, a trace of confusion and instinctive unease on her small face. She seemed to feel that in that deadly toxic swamp, something… had survived, and was undergoing a terrifying transformation.

…

Deep in the toxic mire.

Lin Chen was unaware of the battle’s end outside. All his mind and will were focused on resisting the intense pain, guiding the devouring, and repairing his body. Time seemed to lose meaning in the extreme suffering.

He didn’t know how long passed, until the sixteenth, seventeenth… and finally, a full twenty drops of liquid Shadow Erosion Dou Qi, as viscous as ink and with an eerie dark purple edge, completely condensed and slowly rotated around the central vortex!

“Boom—!”

An aura several times stronger than before suddenly burst forth from Lin Chen’s body! The toxic mire beneath him violently churned as if boiling! The barrier of a Three-Star Dou Zhe was forcefully broken through in this desperate tempering and toxic catalysis!

Four-Star Dou Zhe!

A powerful sense of strength instantly filled his limbs and bones! Although his Meridians were still covered in cracks, like shattered glass, and the cold stinging pain of the Soul Erosion Guidance deep in his Soul had not completely disappeared, the nascent, vast Dou Qi with dual attributes of destruction and extreme toxicity made him feel as if he possessed the power to tear apart all obstacles! The scab from the claw marks on his back fell off, revealing new, tough skin beneath, with a metallic, dull luster. His fractured left arm bones had also initially healed, and while full recovery would still take time, he could already exert some force.

“I succeeded…” Lin Chen slowly stood up from the mire, viscous toxic sludge sliding off him. His entire body was covered in strange purplish-black toxin patterns, and deep in his eyes, dark-red blood light and a subtle, imperceptible dark-purple toxic glow flickered alternately. His aura was cold, overbearing, and carried an unsettling evilness. On his left wrist, the dark-red chain imprint was entwined with purplish-black toxin patterns, like an eerie cursed totem.

He greedily inhaled a deep breath of the highly toxic air. This poisonous miasma, enough to instantly kill an ordinary Dou Master, now, when inhaled into his lungs, brought him a twisted sense of “comfort.” The Shadow Erosion Dou Qi in his body seemed to become even more active.

However, just as he was adapting to the Breakthrough in power and preparing to immediately leave this dangerous place—

“Hiss, hiss…”

An extremely faint hissing sound, yet seemingly directly in the depths of his Soul, came from a certain direction in the poisonous miasma without warning! This hiss carried an ancient, cold, and condescending sense of scrutiny, like a cold snake’s tongue licking his skin!

Lin Chen’s entire body tensed instantly! His hairs stood on end! A sense of crisis, even colder and more primal than when facing the Hall of Souls Protectors, instantly gripped his heart!

He abruptly turned his head, Shadow Erosion Dou Qi instantly covering his entire body, vigilantly looking towards the direction from which the hiss came. The dense, sickly green poisonous miasma churned, and his sight could not penetrate it. But his powerful Soul Power (which had improved after refining the Yin Bone Soul Flame) clearly captured that behind that poisonous miasma, an exquisitely graceful, yet extremely dangerous, blurred silhouette stood silently. A pair of cold, indifferent, and strangely vortex-like eyes pierced through the poisonous miasma, firmly locking onto him!

That gaze carried undisguised curiosity, scrutiny… and a hint of playful interest at discovering new prey.

Lin Chen’s heart sank to the bottom.

Just out of the tiger’s den, and now… a snake’s lair? And, this aura… definitely not an ordinary Demonic Beast!