530: Going south downstream

Nine years passed like flowing water.

On this day, the long-dormant Black Crystal Fortress suddenly stirred.

Piercing horn blasts tore through the Chaos, and hundreds of millions of Tianyang aliens surged out of the fortress like a tide.

They varied in form: some had six wings on their backs, others were covered in scales, and there were even colossal war beasts as large as mountains. As the army advanced, the entire Chaos Sea churned.

"They're finally here!" The Dao Ancestor beside Xu Qing suddenly stood up, his eyes burning with Battle Intent. "If we hold off this wave of attacks, we'll have a few more years of peace!"

The alarm instantly spread throughout the entire mine.

Orders were rapidly issued through the sound transmission Formations, and the war machine, dormant for ten years, roared to life.

On the outer walls of the mine, tens of thousands of Formation nodes lit up simultaneously.

The next moment, countless brilliant beams of light tore through the Chaos, pouring down on the alien army like a torrential rain. Each of these light beams contained world-destroying power, and wherever they passed, alien warriors fell in droves.

"Boom!"

A war beast hundreds of thousands of feet tall was simultaneously struck by three beams of light. Its astonishingly defensive scales instantly vaporized, and its massive Physical Body exploded with a crash, its fragments smashing the surrounding alien warriors into a bloody pulp.

However, more alien troops stepped over the corpses of their comrades and continued to charge, raising various weapons as they surged towards the ancient mine.

"Continue the attack!"

As the order was given, thousands of turrets suddenly rose from the outer perimeter of the mine.

These turrets were entirely black, but terrifying bolts of lightning condensed at their muzzles. When the alien army entered range, tens of thousands of lightning pillars erupted simultaneously, weaving a net of destruction across the Chaos Sea.

"Boom, boom, boom!"

Hundreds of strange warships were directly hit by the lightning pillars, instantly exploding into countless fragments.

But even more warships broke through the lightning net, and waves of attacks violently slammed against the outermost defensive light screen of the grand Formation.

"Crack!"

With a crisp shattering sound, the first light screen developed spiderweb-like cracks.

The alien army let out a deafening cheer, and more Formation-breaking tools rained down on the light screen.

Xu Qing stood at the core of the Formation, calmly observing the battle. The clear status of each layer of defense was displayed on the glazed mirror surface.

When he saw a giant beast about to crash into the second light screen, he flicked his finger, and a Chaos Sword Qi pierced through the Void Realm, precisely splitting the giant beast in two.

"Maintain the rhythm," Xu Qing said indifferently to the Half-Ancestors beside him. "Let them break through slowly."

This offensive and defensive battle lasted for a full year.

The alien army advanced wave after wave, using their flesh and blood to grind through over a hundred layers of defense.

Finally, with a desolate horn blast, the remaining aliens retreated like a tide, leaving behind hundreds of millions of corpses floating in the Chaos Sea, slowly swallowed by the waters of the Xu River.

"It's over," an old Dao Ancestor let out a long sigh. "They broke through thirteen more layers than last time. These bastards are getting more and more skilled."

Xu Qing gazed at the gradually calming battlefield in the glazed mirror, his eyes deep.

All of this ended too hastily. He always felt that the Black Crystal Blood Flame Clan was plotting something.

It seemed he would have to use the System to investigate.

With this thought, Xu Qing immediately used the System to prepare to investigate the Black Crystal Blood Flame Clan's conspiracy.

With a thought, Xu Qing's pupils contracted slightly. It would cost a hundred billion family points. Sure enough, there was a big secret.

Without further thought, he directly spent a hundred billion family points.

Soon, he received a reply from the System. After reading it, Xu Qing's eyes narrowed involuntarily.

The fortress ahead was now just an empty shell, guarded by only two Dao Ancestors and eleven Dao Ancestor Clones.

Two hundred years ago, the Black Crystal Blood Flame Clan discovered an Ancient Ruin Beast, so Black Yuán and others left the fortress to hunt it down.

Ancient Ruin Beasts are creatures that live in the Xu River. Besides feeding on living beings, these creatures also devour ruin river sand and temper their Physical Body.

These creatures possess the strength of a Half-Ancestor at birth, and their cultivation is at least a Two-step Dao Ancestor upon reaching adulthood.

An Ancient Ruin Beast is a treasure from head to toe. Because it lives in the Xu River, its Physical Body is constantly scoured by the Xu River and tempered by ruin river sand, so its flesh and blood contain special Qi and blood, which can help Half-Ancestors Breakthrough to Dao Ancestor, even more effectively than ruin river sand.

Furthermore, the inner core within this creature can help Dao Ancestors achieve Fusion with their three-life bodies.

However, Ancient Ruin Beasts are very rare and usually stay in the main currents of the Xu River, rarely coming to the tributaries except to give birth.

The Ancient Ruin Beast discovered by Black Yuán was a Three-step Dao Ancestor Peak realm existence, not far from a Four-step Dao Ancestor. Its inner core could help a Three-step Dao Ancestor achieve Fusion with their future body, thereby advancing to a Four-step Dao Ancestor.

With the strength of Black Yuán and the others, they naturally wouldn't dare to covet this Ancient Ruin Beast. However, the alien Dao Ancestors who came this time were not just the thirteen openly present; there were also two hidden Three-step Dao Ancestors, whose cultivation had already reached the end of this step.

These two were not members of the Black Crystal Blood Flame Clan, but powerful individuals from two of their vassal races.

Xu Qing had an idea. Staying here was a waste of time; it would be better to join the excitement and see what level his own cultivation had reached.

Thinking of this, he left his Sword Dao Clone and quietly departed with his main body.

With his strength, it was incredibly simple to hide from his colleagues.

Arriving above the Xu River, Xu Qing stretched lazily, feeling completely refreshed as he looked at the vast, empty world around him.

Compared to the mine, he preferred the feeling of roaming between heaven and earth like this.

Xu Qing walked south on the surface of the Xu River, the tributary beneath his feet shimmering with silver-gray light.

This tributary stretched for tens of millions of light-years, with a surface width of several light-years. The further south he went, the wider the river channel became, and occasionally, huge shadows would pass beneath the river, stirring up murky whirlpools.

This section of the tributary still belonged to the Eternal Ruins territory. Further south, past the Eternal Ruins, was the main current of the Xu River, where reefs were dense and aquatic creatures were powerful, making it dangerous even for Four-step Dao Ancestors.

To go there now, one had to pass through the territory of the Tianyang aliens. In the region tens of millions of light-years north and south, and hundreds of millions of light-years east and west, near the main current, was where the Tianyang aliens were entrenched.

They were like roadblocks at the southern end of the Eternal Ruins, blocking the path for creatures from the Eternal Ruins to go south.

However, these things were still far from Xu Qing. He now wanted to go see Black Yuán and the others. According to the System's prompt, they had already cornered the Ancient Ruin Beast 370,000 light-years downstream.

Xu Qing traveled south, the Xu River's current carrying a unique Dao charm, occasionally mixed with a faint, almost imperceptible scent of blood, suggesting that the depths of the Xu River were far from peaceful.

"Boom!"

Suddenly, the river water below surged violently. Xu Qing's eyes narrowed, and he reached out to grasp the water's surface.

In an instant, the Xu River churned, and towering waves tens of millions of feet high rose from the ground. Dark purple water light rolled within the waves, crashing down on him with power that could threaten a Two-step Dao Ancestor.

Xu Qing's condensed golden giant hand remained motionless, its five fingers spread like Mount Tai, pushing fiercely against the giant wave.

Only a deafening roar echoed through the river channel as the giant wave was forcefully shattered into countless water droplets.

The giant hand didn't stop, continuing its momentum to clench tightly towards the riverbed.

A sharp shriek came from the river water, and a colossal creature tens of thousands of miles long was forcefully pulled out of the water, the spray from its fish-like body falling like a downpour.

The System's investigation information had already appeared in Xu Qing's mind.

This was a Xu River Tyrant Fish. Its gray-black body was covered in overlapping bone armor, and each plate of armor was covered with spiral patterns, gleaming with a metallic luster.

It was currently twisting its body frantically, constantly tearing space, trying to struggle free from the golden giant hand.

This Xu River Tyrant Fish had already reached the Two-step Dao Ancestor realm and was one of the top predators in this section of the Xu River tributary. Its bone armor could be refined into Ancestral Weapons and Ancestral Armor, and its flesh and blood contained pure Qi and blood, making it an excellent supplement for Two-step Body Refining Dao Ancestors.

Xu Qing's mind stirred, and a devouring force surged from his palm, wrapping around the Tyrant Fish's body like a spiderweb.

The fish let out a pained wail, the patterns on its bone armor rapidly dimming, and its massive Physical Body shriveled at a visible rate.

It struggled desperately, but couldn't even get close to Xu Qing.

A quarter of an hour later, the devouring force receded, leaving only an empty bone armor, vast as a mountain range, which Xu Qing casually stored within his body.

The residual blood Qi on the river surface was diluted by the current, leaving only a faint fishy smell.

Xu Qing continued south. The shadows beneath the water grew larger, but they avoided him from afar after sensing his aura.

A distance of 370,000 light-years was but a moment's journey for a Dao Ancestor. The current ahead gradually became turbulent, and muffled sounds of fighting could vaguely be heard carried by the water.