58: Chapter 58 Shocking Changes at Mount Shu! The Black-Clad Ritual Awakens the Void King Beast!

At the foot of Mount Dashu, the morning mist had not yet fully dissipated.

Lin Feng stood outside a cordon, squinting his eyes as he looked into the mountains.

The sight before him was somewhat unexpected.

It wasn't the desolate, uninhabited mountain he had imagined.

Instead... it was a heavily fortified military exclusion zone!

Every few hundred meters, there was a sentry post where guards in Explorer Association uniforms stood with rifles.

Several layers of barbed wire were strung up, hung with warning signs that read "Danger Zone, No Entry."

There were also several temporary watchtowers equipped with searchlights—though it was daytime now, they would clearly be turned on at night.

“This setup... is even bigger than the entrance to the Desert Golden Sea,”

Lin Feng muttered to himself.

He had originally thought Mount Dashu was just an ordinary dangerous area; he hadn't expected the Explorer Association to take it so seriously.

It seemed the danger level of the void fissure far exceeded his imagination.

“Halt! What are you doing here?”

A guard noticed Lin Feng and walked over to question him.

Lin Feng pulled out his c-rank explorer badge: “Hello, officer. I want to enter the mountain.”

The guard took the badge, glanced at it, and then sized Lin Feng up.

“Level 16? C-Rank?”

He frowned. “Kid, this isn't a place for someone like you.”

“The void fissure has been unstable lately. More and more Void Beasts are escaping, and their levels are getting higher and higher.”

“Last month, a Level 20 Explorer died in there. They couldn't even find all of his body.”

The guard handed the badge back, his tone serious.

“Go back. Come back when you're Level 30.”

Lin Feng took the badge but didn't leave.

“Officer, I really have business inside.”

“What business?”

“Uh... I'm looking for a type of Void Beast. It's useful for something.”

The guard laughed, his smile tinged with mockery.

“Looking for a Void Beast? Do you know how dangerous they are?”

“At the same level, a Void Beast's combat power is far stronger than any monster in an underground Dungeon!”

“You're Level 16. If you go in and run into a Level 18 Void Beast, it could cost you your life!”

Lin Feng knew the guard meant well.

But he had to go in.

The pet egg needed life energy, and this was the fastest hatching method he currently knew of.

Furthermore, since Master Zhao Ritian had sent him here, it meant there was hope.

“Officer, I really...”

“Enough,” the guard interrupted. “Rules are rules. No entry for anyone below Level 30.”

“If you don't leave now, I'll have to take enforcement measures.”

The guard's hand rested on the holster at his waist.

Lin Feng sighed.

It seemed he couldn't get in through official channels.

He would have to... use unofficial ones.

“Alright, I'll be going then.”

He turned and left, looking like he had given up.

The guard watched him walk away, shook his head, and returned to his post.

“Another kid who doesn't know the height of the heavens or the depth of the earth...”

...

Lin Feng circled around to the side of Mount Dashu and found a relatively hidden patch of forest.

It was several hundred meters away from the cordon, and the guard's line of sight was blocked by trees.

“Fusion magic... let's see if I can open a hole.”

Lin Feng squatted down and pressed both hands to the ground.

He channeled his Mental Energy and activated his Fusion Talent.

But he wasn't fusing items.

Instead... he was fusing the terrain!

【Detected fusible Materials: Soil, Rock, Tree Roots】

【Terrain Fusion】

【Suggested consumption: 5,000 - 20,000 Mana】

【Fusion Direction: Temporary Passage】

“Ten thousand mana!”

Lin Feng chose to inject the energy.

Hum—

The ground beneath his palms began to soften, flow, and reorganize.

It was as if an invisible giant hand was digging.

In just ten short seconds, a tunnel one meter in diameter extending diagonally downward appeared before him.

The tunnel walls were smooth and hard, temporarily solidified so they wouldn't collapse.

The length... was about twenty meters, just enough to pass under the barbed wire and the restricted area.

“It worked!”

Lin Feng's eyes lit up.

He crawled into the tunnel, moving forward on all fours.

It was very dark in the tunnel, but with his 96% Earth Element Affinity, he could clearly sense the surrounding soil structure.

After crawling for about half a minute, light appeared ahead.

Lin Feng poked his head out.

He was already inside the cordon!

Looking back, the tunnel entrance began to slowly close after he emerged, the ground returning to its original state, even the turf was restored.

“Fusion Talent... is really useful.”

Lin Feng brushed the dirt off his clothes and turned to walk deeper into the mountain.

...

Mount Dashu was even larger than he had imagined.

Lin Feng followed the map his Master had given him, climbing up along a secluded, narrow path.

The mountain path was rugged and overgrown with weeds; occasionally, he could see traces of battle—charred trees, shattered rocks, and dried bloodstains.

“A battle took place here...”

Lin Feng became alert and slowed his pace.

He held the scepter of sand in one hand, while the other was ready to release a magic shield at any moment.

After walking for about an hour, the altitude had risen to over a thousand meters.

The surrounding trees grew denser, and the light became dim.

A... strange smell permeated the air.

It wasn't the fresh scent of plants, nor the earthy smell of soil.

It was a faint, peculiar odor, a mixture of sulfur and metal.

“Residual Void Energy?”

Lin Feng remembered his textbooks saying that void creatures leave behind a specific energy aura wherever they pass.

It seemed he wasn't far from the void fissure.

He continued forward, his eyes constantly scanning his surroundings.

Another half hour passed.

Suddenly, a "crunch, crunch" sound came from ahead.

It sounded like something was gnawing on bones.

Lin Feng immediately stopped, hid behind a large tree, and peeked out.

Thirty meters away, in a clearing, lay a... monster.

The thing looked like an upscaled pangolin, but its skin was dark purple and covered in fine scales.

It was about two meters long with a thick tail ending in bone spikes.

The strangest part was its head—it had no eyes, only a massive, constantly opening and closing mouth filled with rows of sharp teeth.

【Void Karami Beast (Common)】

【Rank: 18】

【HP: 4,000】

【attack power: 350-450 (Includes Void Corrosion)】

【Defense: 300】

【Skills: Bite, Tail Swipe, Void Burrowing】

【Description: The lowest class of void creature. Low intelligence, but extremely aggressive.】

“A Void Karami Beast... not a platypus.”

Lin Feng was a bit disappointed, but he quickly adjusted his mindset.

Since he was already here, he might as well test his hand.

He wanted to see just how strong a Void Beast really was.

He didn't hesitate and attacked directly!

“Sand Control—Sandstorm Cage!”

Lin Feng waved a hand.

Crash—

The dirt and gravel on the surrounding ground instantly came to life!

They turned into countless grains of sand, surging toward the Void Karami Beast!

In the blink of an eye, a Sandstorm Cage five meters in diameter formed, trapping the monster inside!

“Roar?!”

The Void Karami Beast was startled and snapped its head up—though it had no eyes, it could sense danger.

It tried to burrow into the ground to escape, activating its 【Void Burrowing】 skill.

But the Sandstorm Cage had isolated the ground; the burrowing failed!

“Light Bullet Technique! Lightning Strike Technique! Fusion—Light-Lightning Explosive Bullet!”

Lin Feng brought his hands together, and gold and purple light intertwined.

A fist-sized ball of light and lightning whistled out, smashing into the Sandstorm Cage!

Boom!!!

Blinding light and thunder erupted simultaneously!

-8910!

Instakill!

The Void Karami Beast didn't even have time to scream before its body was blown into fragments.

Dark purple blood splattered everywhere, emitting a pungent, foul stench.

【Killed Void Karami Beast, EXP +1,000】

【Obtained: Void Crystal ×1 (Blue Material)】

【Void Crystal: Contains a trace amount of Void Energy. Can be used for equipment enchanting or special potions.】

“It's... dead just like that?”

Lin Feng was a bit surprised.

He thought Void Beasts were strong, but it was a one-shot kill?

“It might be the level difference. Although I'm Level 16, my attributes are much higher than others at the same level.”

He walked over to the corpse and picked up the Void Crystal.

It was the size of a pigeon egg, dark purple, with tiny points of light flowing inside like a miniature starry sky.

“I'll keep it for now.”

Lin Feng tossed the crystal into his wanxiang ring and continued forward.

It seemed Void Beasts weren't that terrifying after all.

As long as he was careful, there shouldn't be any big problems.

...

Another half hour passed.

Lin Feng suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Strong energy fluctuations were coming from several hundred meters ahead.

It wasn't just one or two Void Beasts.

It was... many strands of energy mixed together!

There was human energy, Void Beast energy, and one more... extremely dark, evil energy.

“What's going on?”

Lin Feng frowned, lightened his steps, and quietly approached.

He channeled his Earth Element Affinity, controlling the surrounding sand to cover his body, forming a layer of camouflage.

From a distance, he looked like a moving pile of sand.

He slowly crept to the edge of a cliff and poked his head over to look down.

Below was a valley, not large, but very well-hidden.

There were over a dozen people in the valley, all wearing uniform black combat gear and masks.

They stood in a circle, and in the center of the circle was a... complex magic circle?

The magic circle was drawn with a dark red liquid and emitted a nauseating smell of blood.

In the center of the magic circle sat a transparent container.

Inside the container was a trapped Void Beast—exactly the Void Platypus Beast Lin Feng was looking for!

But the platypus was in a very wrong state.

Its eyes were blood-red, black patterns were surfacing on its body, and its aura was violent and chaotic.

“Hurry up! The ritual is almost complete!”

A leader in black urged, his voice hoarse.

“Yes!”

Several men in black quickly dragged a box over from the side.

They opened it to reveal a... heart?

No, not an ordinary heart.

It was the heart of some kind of monster, still beating, with pitch-black mist swirling around its surface.

【heart of darkness (Special Item)】

【Quality: Purple】

【Effect: Injects dark energy, can corrupt a creature's sanity and significantly increase combat power.】

【Description: An evil object from the abyss, usually used for forbidden rituals.】

“What are they trying to do?”

A sense of foreboding rose in Lin Feng's heart.

His intuition told him this definitely wasn't anything good!

“Inject it!”

The leader ordered.

A man in black tremblingly held up the heart of darkness, walked to the container, and opened a small hatch.

Then he... shoved the heart inside!

“ROAR—!!!”

The Void Platypus Beast let out a shrill, agonizing howl!

The moment the heart of darkness fused with its body, its size began to skyrocket!

From its original two meters long, it swelled to three meters, four meters, five meters...

Its skin turned from dark purple to pitch black, and bone spikes grew from its surface.

Its duckbill became longer and sharper, and its teeth turned into serrated blades.

Its eyes changed from blood-red to completely black, with no pupils, only pure malice.

“It worked! It worked!”

The men in black shouted excitedly.

But in the next second—

A sudden change occurred!

That Void Beast—suddenly smashed through the container!

It opened its massive maw, and a terrifying suction force erupted!

“Ahhh—!!!”

“No! Stop!”

“Leader, sav—”

The dozen or so men in black screamed as their bodies flew uncontrollably toward that giant mouth.

Puchi! Puchi! Puchi!

Like eating jellybeans, they were swallowed one by one.

Even the leader couldn't escape.

In just five short seconds, only bloodstains remained in the valley, along with a... terrifying new monster!

【Void Jitaï Beast (Kings Pressure)】

【Rank: 30】

【HP: 1,500,000】

【attack power: 5,200-5,800 (Includes Dark Corrosion)】

【Defense: 5,500】

【Skills: Dark Breath, Life Siphon, Void Tear, Kings Pressure】

【Description: A Void Beast corrupted by a heart of darkness. It has undergone an uncontrollable mutation and ascended to King Rank. Extremely dangerous.】

“One and a half million HP... attack and defense over five thousand...”

Lin Feng sucked in a cold breath.

These stats were far more terrifying than the Domain Lord Level Black-Horned Magic Snake in the Desert Golden Sea!

The key was, it seemed... it had found him?

After swallowing all the men in black, the Void Jitaï Beast slowly turned its head.

Those pure black eyes, across a distance of several hundred meters, locked onto the cliff where Lin Feng was hiding.

“I've been spotted!”

Lin Feng's heart sank.

He had clearly used sand for camouflage; how could he still be discovered?

“ROAR—!!!”

The Void Jitaï Beast roared at the sky, the sound waves shaking the entire valley.

Then, it moved.

It didn't run.

It... flew!

A pair of tattered wings made of bone spikes and membranes unfolded from its back, and with a sudden flap!

Boom!!!

Air currents exploded as the massive body soared into the sky, lunging straight for Lin Feng!

It was incredibly fast!

Like a bolt of black lightning!

“Damn it!”

Lin Feng knew he couldn't run away.

With this speed, there was no way he could lose it.

He could only... fight!

He stood up from the pile of sand and discarded his camouflage.

He gripped the scepter of sand tightly, the blue light of a Water Shield appearing on his body.

“Master said one Void Beast is worth three Dungeon monsters of the same level...”

“Does that mean a Level 30 King Rank... is equivalent to a Level 90 Dungeon Lord?”

“I don't believe it... I have to test its depth.”

“Come on.”

“Let me see... just how strong a Void King really is!”

He raised his hand, and the sand and soil within a hundred meters began to churn.