222: Chapter 222 The Path of Severed Spirits

The further they went, the dimmer the light became.

The surrounding rock walls were no longer crimson, but a deathly grayish-white, much like the weathered bones of some giant beast from ten thousand years ago.

The air became thick; every breath required immense effort, and lungs wheezed like a broken bellows.

Gu Changsheng paused slightly.

The flow of mana in his body suddenly became sluggish, then completely fell silent.

The Dao Foundation in his Dantian felt as if molten iron had been poured into it; no matter how his Divine Sense tried to stir it, not a single ripple was produced.

[Warning: Entering the 'Spirit Severance Dead Zone'.]

[Current Status: Five Elements severed, Divine Sense imprisoned.]

[Only remaining reliance: Physical Body.]

"Mana... has disappeared."

Shen Zhiwei exclaimed, and the protective Dragon Qi circulating on her body's surface instantly dissipated.

She instinctively reached for the Formation Plate in her sleeve, only to find that the canglan formation disk, which could withstand a blow from the Purple Mansion realm, was now as dull as ordinary iron.

Ao Yi's expression was extremely ugly.

The halberd in his hand felt as heavy as a thousand jin; the dragon soul originally attached to it let out a mournful cry and retreated into the halberd to play dead.

"It's a Spirit Severance Formation."

Ao Yi stabbed the halberd into the ground and took a ragged breath.

"This is the final line of defense laid by the Ancestral Dragon to prevent foreign enemies from invading the core area. Here, all beings are equal; only the Physical Body can cross."

Gu Changsheng flexed his wrists.

His joints let out a series of crisp pops.

Not only was he not flustered, but he felt a long-lost sense of ease.

Without the interference of mana, this Physical Body, which had just been tempered in the Dragon Transformation Pool, was now greedily stretching every inch of muscle.

Here, he was king.

"Let's go."

Gu Changsheng took the lead, his speed increasing rather than decreasing.

The three of them hurried along a winding downward passage.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

At a narrow corner ahead, a sudden clamor of voices and footsteps was heard.

"Bad luck! What kind of broken place is this? I can't even cast a simple illumination spell!"

A sharp female voice echoed in the enclosed passage, carrying unconcealed irritability.

Gu Changsheng stopped, his gaze piercing through the dim corner.

Enemies meet on a narrow path.

Over a dozen Cultivators dressed in fine clothes were blocking the intersection, holding night-luminescent pearls for light.

The woman in the lead wore complex palace attire that had been torn to shreds by rocks; her hair was disheveled, and she was venting her anger on the guards beside her.

Thirteenth Princess, Ao Lin.

At the end of the group, a figure in a scholar's robe was shrinking back.

Lin Xiren held a broken folding fan, looking miserable as he helped Ao Lin carry her skirt—a perfect image of an unlucky scholar pressed into service.

"Who's there?!"

Ao Lin was extremely sharp; she whipped her head around, her slanted eyes staring fixedly into the shadows.

Upon seeing it was Shen Zhiwei and that "eternal regret" Guest Elder, the panic on her face instantly turned into wild joy.

"Ha! Heaven is truly helping me!"

Ao Lin pointed at Shen Zhiwei, laughing so hard she trembled.

"You little brat, outside there were people protecting you, so this Princess couldn't easily make a move. Now that we've reached this Spirit Severance land, let's see where you can run!"

She didn't realize the danger was imminent at all.

In her view, everyone had lost their mana, and her side had the advantage in numbers; they could crush these three through sheer numbers alone.

"Get them for this Princess!"

Ao Lin waved her hand, glaring viciously at Gu Changsheng.

"Chop the man into pieces to feed the dogs, and catch the woman alive. This Princess will personally skin her!"

Although the dozen or so guards had also lost their mana, relying on their numbers, they drew their waist sabers and charged forward with a roar.

Shen Zhiwei's face turned pale, and she instinctively took half a step back.

Cultivators accustomed to bombardment-style combat feel instinctive fear when they suddenly lose their mana, like a tiger with its teeth pulled.

Gu Changsheng didn't retreat.

He looked at the charging guards as if they were a group of snails in slow motion.

"Seeking death."

Two words escaped his lips.

Gu Changsheng's figure surged forward.

No fancy footwork, just a pure linear sprint.

The hard rock floor exploded into two deep pits under his feet.

Bang!

The guard in the very front didn't even have time to raise his saber before a blood hole appeared in his chest, visible from both sides.

Gu Changsheng withdrew his fist, turned his body, and delivered an elbow strike.

Crack.

The second guard's head twisted toward his back at a bizarre angle, his neck bone shattered.

Like a tiger among sheep.

It was a one-sided slaughter.

In this Spirit Severance land, Gu Changsheng's physical strength, comparable to the Late Stage of the Purple Mansion realm, was the absolute rule.

He didn't even need to use the jinghong sword.

Fists, elbows, knees—every part of his body became the most lethal weapon.

In just three breaths.

Over a dozen elite guards with Foundation Establishment cultivation all lay in pools of blood.

Not a single corpse was intact.

The thick smell of blood exploded in the narrow passage, making one want to vomit.

The wild laughter on Ao Lin's face froze.

She stared blankly at the blood-soaked man in green robes walking toward her step by step.

There was no trace of Killing Intent on him, only the indifference of looking at a dead object.

"You... don't come over here!"

Ao Lin screamed and retreated, desperately trying to circulate the mana in her body, but it only resulted in a sharp pain in her Dantian.

Her Purple Mansion cultivation, which she was so proud of, had now become the biggest joke.

"I am a Princess of the Dragon Palace! You dare kill me? Royal Father won't let you off!"

Gu Changsheng turned a deaf ear.

He walked up to Ao Lin and reached out to grab her slender neck.

Like picking up a chicken for slaughter.

His fingers tightened.

Ao Lin's feet left the ground as she kicked desperately; her beautiful face turned the color of pig liver due to lack of oxygen, and true despair finally appeared in her eyes.

"Guest Elder, keep her alive."

Ao Yi's voice came from behind, carrying a hint of urgency.

"She has the 'Dragon Blood Key' to open the core altar."

The strength in Gu Changsheng's hand loosened slightly.

Ao Lin was able to breathe, coughing violently, her face covered in tears and snot.

Gu Changsheng didn't look at her, but turned to look at the corner.

There, Lin Xiren was pressing against the rock wall, trying his best to minimize his presence.

Their eyes met.

Lin Xiren trembled all over, and the folding fan in his hand clattered to the ground.

"Bi-bi-bi... Big Brother!"

He fell to his knees with a thud, hands raised high above his head, his face filled with sincere terror.

"This humble one was just passing by! I was captured by this crazy woman to be used as labor! We're on the same side!"

As he spoke, he gave Gu Changsheng a very subtle wink.

That look clearly said:

Brother Gu is mighty, I'm convinced, don't kill me, I'm still useful.

[daily intelligence Refresh]

[Target: Lin Xiren]

[Current Psychology: What did this guy named Gu grow up eating? His Physical Body is so abnormal? A wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him; I'll lay low for now.]

[Action Analysis: His right hand is hidden in his sleeve, clutching a 'Boundary-Breaking Talisman', which is his only means of escape in the Spirit Severance land.]

Gu Changsheng withdrew his gaze.

This old schemer really did have a trick up his sleeve.

"Get lost."

Gu Changsheng casually tossed the half-dead Ao Lin to Shen Zhiwei.

Shen Zhiwei took over her once-arrogant sister; a flash of satisfaction crossed her eyes as she skillfully sealed the other's acupoints and searched out the Dragon Blood Key.

"Thank you, Big Brother, for sparing my life!"

Lin Xiren felt like he had been granted a great amnesty; he scrambled out of the way and even thoughtfully used his sleeve to wipe the bloodstains from Gu Changsheng's shoes.

That sycophantic behavior made even Ao Yi's mouth twitch.

"Let's go."

Gu Changsheng ignored this clown, leading the two of them across the floor of corpses and continuing forward.

Lin Xiren waited until the three had walked far away before slowly climbing up from the ground.

He patted the dust off his knees and looked in the direction Gu Changsheng had disappeared; the fear in his eyes instantly vanished, replaced by deep wariness.

"Physical Body Sanctification... what kind of Dao is this Gu Changsheng exactly practicing?"

He picked up his folding fan and followed thoughtfully.

Passing through this long Spirit Severance passage.

The view ahead suddenly opened up.

All the oppression and darkness retreated at this moment.

Replaced by a grand sight sufficient to shake the Divine Soul.

This was a void starry sky.

Beneath their feet was a transparent Void Walkway, and above their heads, billions of stars were circulating.

And in the center of that starry sky, a ten-thousand-zhang-high black pyramid altar stood quietly.

The altar was cast entirely from some unknown black metal, its surface engraved with dense Archaic Dragon Script, emitting a terrifying aura that suppressed the heavens.

And at the very top of that altar.

A mass of chaotic airflow was slowly rotating, with a miniature phantom of the Ancestral Dragon faintly visible sleeping within it.

Ancestral Dragon Qi.

Gu Changsheng stood at the end of the walkway, his gaze scanning the area below the altar.

Quite a few people had already gathered there.

First Prince Ao Qian, his golden armor shattered, was sitting cross-legged on a meteorite to heal his wounds, with only that Penglai Sword Cultivator left by his side.

Ninth Prince Ao Lie, half of his body torn apart, revealing white bones, yet still fiercely staring upward, with Ling Yunzhi beside him, life or death unknown.

Sixth Prince Ao Ming, fanning himself as he stood in the distance, unharmed, though his expression was somewhat complex.

All the survivors had arrived.

But strangely, not a single person dared to step onto the steps of that altar.