362: Chapter 362 Delving into the Core: The Fragmented Imperial Array, a Danger at Every Step

At this moment, in the heart of the forbidden zone.

Xu Chen stood at the edge of a parched rocky valley, watching the black Death Qi recede like a tide.

Under the gaze of his Heavenly Dao Divine Pupils, this Death Qi didn't simply dissipate into thin air; instead, it was being forcibly pulled by some higher-level power, frantically surging back toward the very core of the forbidden zone.

“It seems the big boss hidden in here has quite an appetite,” Xu Chen remarked.

Xu Chen put away the Formation Plate and turned to look at Ji Qingyun, who was standing behind him.

After a night of rest and adaptation, Ji Qingyun had fully mastered her new body. She wore an elegant, moon-white long dress that Xu Chen had found in his Storage Ring.

Though the style was simple, on her, it accentuated an ethereal and stunningly cold temperament. Her waterfall-like black hair was loosely tied with a ribbon, fluttering gently in the breeze.

“Is there anywhere else your body feels uncomfortable?” Xu Chen asked in a gentle tone.

Ji Qingyun shook her head, a flash of softness appearing in her autumn-water-like eyes.

“No. All that Death Qi has been completely extracted by you. It's just...”

She looked up toward the depths of the forbidden zone where the Death Qi was receding, her beautiful face clouding over with an undeniable gravity.

“I can feel an aura awakening in that direction that makes even my Origin tremble. That power... is very ancient, and very evil.”

Xu Chen stepped forward and habitually reached out his hand.

Ji Qingyun’s body stiffened slightly, but only for an instant. She then submissively placed her soft, slightly cool jade hand into Xu Chen’s broad and warm palm.

After the “honest meeting” and the mutual entrusting of life and death the previous night, she no longer rejected Xu Chen’s touch. In fact, a subconscious instinctual dependence had begun to grow within her.

“Ancient and evil is good,” Xu Chen said, tightening his grip on her small hand as his lips curled into a confident arc. “If there were only a few nobodies hidden inside, wouldn’t This Young Master have come all this way for nothing? Come on, I’ll take you to see the excitement.”

With that, Xu Chen led Ji Qingyun, transforming into a streak of light as they sped toward the core of the forbidden zone, following the direction of the receding Death Qi.

On the outskirts of the rocky valley.

Commander Xu Zhan of the Pojun Imperial Guards watched the Young Lord’s departing figure and immediately raised his hand to give an order.

“Pojun Imperial Guards, hear my command! Form the array! Follow closely behind the Young Lord, maintaining a safe distance of thirty li. Be ready for fire support at any time!”

Thirty thousand black-armored elites silently vanished into the surrounding grey gloom, like an indestructible shadow, quietly guarding their Young Lord.

...

The further they went, the more desolate and eerie the environment became.

The ground beneath them had turned a dark black, like charcoal, and the air was filled with a frantic Law that made one feel restless and irritable. Even a Saint realm expert walking here would likely suffer Qi Deviation due to the interference of this Law.

“Stop.”

Xu Chen suddenly halted, pulling Ji Qingyun to a stop as they hovered in mid-air.

Ahead lay what appeared to be a flat, open basin. There were no obstacles, and not even a trace of Death Qi.

But it was precisely such a calm area that caused Xu Chen’s brow to knit tightly together.

In the vision of his Heavenly Dao Divine Pupils, the space above this basin was interwoven with tens of thousands of dense, blood-red threads of Law. These threads appeared chaotic, but they were actually connected end-to-end, forming a peerless killing Formation so massive it was suffocating.

At the core of the Formation, a trace of pressure that felt familiar to Xu Chen faintly emanated.

Ultimate Imperial Might!

“This is a fragmented killing Formation left behind by an Ancient Emperor.”

Xu Chen narrowed his eyes, his tone carrying a rare gravity.

“Although it is ancient and the Formation hub is already broken and incomplete, if one were to blindly barge in and trigger the Formation eye, even a Quasi-Emperor expert would be shredded into a mist of blood by those red threads in an instant.”

Ji Qingyun followed Xu Chen’s gaze, but she could only see a desolate basin.

She gripped Xu Chen’s hand back, her fingertips turning slightly white. “Then... should we take a detour?”

“A detour?” Xu Chen chuckled, his eyes flashing with a confident light. “In an Emperor-level Formation like this, touching one part often affects the whole. The surrounding Void Realm has likely been completely locked down long ago. Taking a detour would only lead us into an even more troublesome death trap.”

“Besides, with a killing Formation of this level guarding it, it means whatever is hidden behind this basin is definitely worth the risk.”

Xu Chen turned his head to look at Ji Qingyun’s slightly nervous face.

“Qingyun, for every step we take next, you must follow my footprints exactly. Do not step even half an inch wrong. Understand?”

Looking into Xu Chen’s deep and focused eyes, the nervousness in Ji Qingyun’s heart miraculously subsided. She nodded heavily.

“Okay.”

Xu Chen took a deep breath, pushing his Heavenly Dao Divine Pupils to their limit. The world before his eyes seemed to slow down countless times at this moment.

Those blood-red Formation threads were constantly being deconstructed and reorganized in his eyes, as he searched for the only life gate hidden amidst the thousands of death gates.

“Follow me closely.”

Xu Chen took Ji Qingyun’s hand and took the first step into the basin.

What seemed like a casual step precisely avoided three intersecting blood-red threads, landing on a node where the Law was relatively weak.

Ji Qingyun followed closely behind, her steps light as she landed exactly in Xu Chen’s footprints.

In this way, the two of them danced on the edge of a blade within the peril-filled Imperial Formation.

As they went deeper, the Laws within the Formation became even more violent. Spatial rifts occasionally flashed through the surrounding Void Realm, accompanied by destructive astral winds capable of tearing apart Sacred Artifacts, whistling past their clothes.

“To the front left, step out three feet!”

Xu Chen barked in a low voice.

Their figures flashed.

The very instant they left, a blood-red bolt of lightning as thick as a bowl descended from the sky, slamming into the spot where they had just stood, blasting the hard black stone ground into a bottomless pit.

Ji Qingyun glanced at the deep pit with lingering fear, a layer of fine cold sweat involuntarily seeping from her palms.

She subconsciously tightened her grip on Xu Chen’s hand.

Feeling the pressure from her palm, Xu Chen turned his head and gave her a reassuring smile.

“Don’t be afraid. With me here, this broken Formation won’t harm a single hair on your head.”

In an environment filled with such step-by-step killing intent, Xu Chen could still maintain such a calm posture. This bearing of remaining unfazed even if Mount Tai were to collapse before him caused Ji Qingyun’s heart to skip a beat for no reason.

A faint blush unknowingly colored her habitually cold face.

From the initial stiffness and resistance to the current naturalness and dependence, the way they walked hand-in-hand had unknowingly become perfectly synchronized.

Xu Chen’s Heavenly Dao Divine Pupils were truly Heaven-Defying.

It took a full two hours, and after avoiding hundreds of fatal killing moves, the two finally crossed this Fragmented Imperial Formation without further incident, arriving at the other end of the basin.

The moment they stepped out of the Formation’s range, both of them let out a long sigh of relief.

“It seems that old fellow’s attainment in Formations was only so-so, barely qualified to serve as a guiding light for me,” Xu Chen quipped, his words as sharp as ever.

However, before he could even catch his breath.

A sudden change occurred.

During the process of breaking the Formation, amidst the turbulent Law storms, a very hidden strand of Archaic Pink Poisonous Miasma had been mixed in.

This poisonous miasma was colorless and odorless, making it difficult even for the Heavenly Dao Divine Pupils to detect in a short time.

It had no effect on Xu Chen, who possessed the Hongmeng Creation Origin Body, but for Ji Qingyun, who had just taken human form and whose Origin was not yet fully stabilized, it was an absolute death poison.

“Qingyun?”

Xu Chen sensed something wrong from the hand he was holding and turned to look.

He saw Ji Qingyun leaning limply against him. Her cheeks, usually as cold as frost, were now as red as sunset clouds.

Her autumn-water eyes had completely lost their usual clarity, replaced by a blurred longing and desire that could make anyone lose their reason.

Her breathing became rapid and scorching. Her once cool jade hands were now terrifyingly hot.

“So hot...”

Ji Qingyun let out a soft, bone-melting murmur, her body uncontrollably pressing against Xu Chen.

She was like a traveler who had been thirsty for days in the desert, and the rich Hongmeng life force and Pure Yang Qi on Xu Chen were the sweetest spring water to her.

She instinctively reached out her arms and tightly wrapped them around Xu Chen’s neck.

Her beautiful face leaned close to Xu Chen’s, her breath smelling of orchids.

“Xu Chen... I feel so bad...”

Ji Qingyun’s voice carried a sob. That pitiful yet naturally seductive appearance was enough to turn any high-level Cultivator with great self-control into a beast instantly.

Looking at the red lips so close at hand, Xu Chen’s Adam’s apple involuntarily bobbed.

He immediately sent his Divine Thought into Ji Qingyun’s body.

“Damn it, it’s the Archaic Acacia Miasma!”

Xu Chen cursed inwardly.

This poisonous miasma specifically targeted the Bloodline of the Yao Race. Once it entered the body, it would instantly ignite the victim’s fire of lust. If Yin and Yang were not balanced in time, the victim would be burned to death as their Origin was consumed by this fire of desire!

Looking at the descendant of the Yao Emperor in his arms, who had completely lost her reason and begun to haphazardly tear at his collar.

Xu Chen took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the wicked fire rising in his heart.

While going with the flow right now would certainly be enjoyable, in this desolate wilderness, unknown dangers could arrive at any moment. Although Xu Chen didn't stick to conventions, he was by no means a beast who let his lust dictate his actions regardless of the occasion.

“Qingyun, wake up!”

Xu Chen grabbed her wandering hands, attempting to use Hongmeng Purple Qi to forcibly suppress the miasma in her body.

But this time, the Hongmeng Purple Qi actually failed. The miasma had already completely fused with her Yao Emperor Bloodline; touching one part affected the whole.

“Give it to me... give it to me...”

Ji Qingyun seemed unable to hear Xu Chen’s call. She forcefully broke free of his hands and coiled around him like a water snake.

Those scorching red lips kissed Xu Chen’s cheek and neck without any technique, carrying a desperate demand.

In the face of this fatal temptation, Xu Chen’s final line of rational defense was being broken down bit by bit.