188: Daylight Star Appears

Above the deathly silent dark green marsh, the grayish-white eerie mist slowly retracted. The residual power of the thunder still flickered and jumped across the surface of the mud, making faint "sizzling" sounds.

Gao De was silently sensing the slight heat in his Bloodline and the changes of rebirth brought about by devouring the Marsh Venom Dragon Boa, while Rainbow quietly groomed the increasingly brilliant iridescent light around her body.

Suddenly—a sound like glass shattering rang out above the great marsh; a piece of the sky had cracked.

Then, without any warning, the gray firmament above the marsh, which was shrouded in poisonous miasma and dark clouds year-round, suddenly brightened!

It wasn't sunlight piercing through, but a fierce, tyrannical crimson firelight carrying a primordial aura. It forcibly tore through the Void Realm, reflecting across half the marsh like a purgatory!

Stars appearing in the daylight—an omen of ill fortune!

Alarm bells rang in Gao De's heart. Almost instinctively, he operated the [Hidden Scale Concealing Scenery] Divine Ability to its full extent. His figure instantly merged with the still-vibrating environment of the mud pit, his aura suppressed to the extreme.

Rainbow's reaction was equally swift. Her gorgeous iridescent light instantly pulled inward, turning into a barely perceptible dim shadow as she curled up in the darkness beside Gao De.

They had just completed their concealment.

In the next instant, the true face of that "shooting star" appeared—it was a crimson fire meteor so massive it was suffocating. Dragging a trail of flames that spanned the sky, it crashed through the clouds in a posture of world-ending destruction, hurtling toward the depths of Yunmeng Marsh!

Before the fire meteor had even fully arrived, that irresistible and terrifying pressure had already swept across the land!

Gao De felt as if he were being crushed by invisible mountains. Even with his Peak third-rank cultivation and his powerful flood dragon body, he felt his blood and Qi churning, and the muscles beneath his scales involuntarily tensed up.

This wasn't pure energy or Realm suppression, but a fierce aura from a higher level of life, one that was more ancient and savage!

The residual poisonous miasma in the marsh was instantly evaporated and dispersed. The water surface was pressed downward into a concave shape, and mud splashed everywhere.

Within a radius of hundreds of miles, countless birds, beasts, and insects—regardless of their rank—all fell to the ground trembling, letting out despairing wails.

"Roar—!!!"

A world-shaking roar exploded from within that blazing firelight!

Sound waves rolled out like a physical shockwave, sweeping across mountains and rivers.

At the edge of the marsh where Gao De was hiding, the half-withered giant trees fell over in a chorus of cracks, and rocks tumbled down from distant mountain cliffs.

Within the firelight, the silhouette of a giant beast vaguely manifested. Though blurred by the surrounding flames, its mountain-like physique was a full hundred zhang tall. The towering crimson dragon horns on its head and its two massive red lantern-like eyes, burning with raging fury as if hanging in mid-air, were terrifying enough!

"Dragon horns... crimson fire... giant lion form..." Gao De's pupils shrank as fragments of ancient records flashed through his mind.

"This aura... is definitely not third-rank! It might even be beyond the early or Middle Stage of the fourth-rank! Where did this Vicious Beast come from?!"

Before he could think further, the target of the crashing fire meteor appeared—it wasn't the edge of the marsh where he was, but a towering giant peak deep within Yunmeng Marsh that was usually hidden behind the miasma!

"Rumble—!!!"

A world-shaking sound of impact echoed. Even from a great distance, Gao De could feel the violent tremors of the earth beneath his feet.

Under the impact of the crimson fire, countless terrifyingly large cracks split across the surface of that giant peak. Dust mixed with turbulent Spiritual Qi soared into the sky, forming a gray mushroom cloud laced with crimson flames.

Within the firelight, the silhouette of the giant beast tumbled down from the point of impact, crushing everything along the steep mountain slope.

"Rumble..."

Wherever it passed, mountain rocks shattered and ancient trees turned to ash. Furthermore, droplets of red-gold flame clung to the rocks and soil like living things, burning fiercely and proving difficult to extinguish.

And along that tumbling path, shocking, flowing trails of gold-red blood were left behind!

That blood seemed to contain terrifyingly high temperatures and energy; where it dripped, it sizzled, burning small pits into the ground that emitted green smoke.

It was injured!

This peerlessly terrifying giant crimson fire lion, suspected of possessing a Dragon Clan Bloodline, had already been heavily injured before it fell!

Gao De's heart gave a violent throb.

A heavily injured top-tier Vicious Beast of unknown origin falling into the core area of Yunmeng Marsh... once this news spread, what kind of monstrous waves would it stir up in the already undercurrent-filled Yunmeng Marsh?

The Heavenly Sword Branch Alliance, the various Yao Kings, the Qianjiang Dragon King... every power would be alarmed!

An Opportunity? Or an even greater crisis?

He stared fixedly at the mess of the Lingyun Peak area in the distance, where fire and dust permeated, suppressing the urge to go and investigate immediately.

With his current strength, rashly approaching the crash site of such a being was no different from seeking death.

The residual crimson fire, the dissipating terrifying pressure, and the various giants that might follow were all fatal threats.

"I must immediately send word back to Qianjiao Cliff!" Gao De made a prompt decision. "Turtle Three Thousand needs to know about this to adjust our strategy. At the same time, we must closely monitor the movements of all parties!"

He took one last deep look at the crash site where the fire had not yet gone out, as if to carve the silhouette of that crimson giant lion into his mind.

Immediately, his figure turned into a dim light that was even fainter than when he arrived, almost completely merging with the shadows of the marsh. Carrying Rainbow, who had also suppressed her aura to the limit, he sped toward Qianjiao Cliff as fast as possible without making a sound.

Stars appeared in the daylight; a crimson lion fell upon the peak.

The tranquility of Yunmeng Marsh was completely shattered by this sudden "fire meteor" from beyond the heavens.

Among the distant mountains, the dust and crimson fire had not yet fully settled, but that terrifying aura that made one's Soul tremble had quickly moved away along with the soaring firelight, leaving behind only the scarred Lingyun Peak and the scorching, violent energy aftermath lingering in the air.

Gao De and Rainbow remained hidden in the shadow of an ancient tree whose leaves had been stripped by the shockwave, not moving for a long time.

Only after confirming that the being resembling a suanni had indeed fled far away did his tensed nerves slightly relax, and a strong sense of palpitations welled up in hindsight.

"Fifth-rank... maybe even higher!" Purple Lightning pulsed violently in Gao De's dragon eyes as he muttered to himself, his voice carrying a hint of dryness.

The world-shaking impact just now, that terrifying pressure that made him almost unable to move even from the residual power, that gold-red fire that easily evaporated the lake surface and burned mountains... every bit of it confirmed this fearsome guess.

A terrifying primordial beast of at least the fifth-rank, possessing the suanni Bloodline, was heavily injured and had fallen into Yunmeng Marsh!

Once this news got out, it would be enough to shake the entire cultivation world!

"Master, please return quickly!" Turtle Three Thousand's anxious voice transmission came through the tianji mirror; clearly, Qianjiao Cliff had also sensed that world-shaking commotion.

"This old servant has activated the highest level of alert and attempted a divination. However, the heavenly secrets are in Chaos and the Evil Qi is soaring to the sky. I can only vaguely sense that great peril and a great Opportunity coexist! Master, return quickly!"

"I am returning immediately." Gao De suppressed his chaotic thoughts and regained his composure.

He took one last look toward Lingyun Peak, especially at those collapsed mountain cracks where gold-red spots of light faintly flickered, not yet licked clean by the suanni—that was the residual suanni precious blood, containing terrifying energy and Bloodline essence!

Even just a few drops would be an inestimable treasure for any cultivator, especially for the Yao Race who possessed Dragon Clan Bloodlines!

Its value likely far exceeded the Neon Phoenix Pure Blood Nest and might even incite Nascent Soul Old Ancestors to personally step in and fight for it!

But Gao De instantly snuffed out the sliver of greed that had just risen in his heart.

With his current strength, coveting the remains of such a being was no different from pulling chestnuts out of a fire—it was seeking his own destruction.

He didn't know how many eyes had already been alerted and were currently rushing toward Lingyun Peak from all directions!