167: White bones in the wasteland, souls forged by the eerie wind
The night was deep, and Ye Chen was like a ghost blending into the shadows. Avoiding several waves of Black Fiend Cult Disciples clearly searching for him, he quietly slipped out of the massive and chaotic gates of Filthy Earth Black City. Outside the city, the Devilish Qi was thinner, but it carried a sense of desolation and death. He did not stop for a moment, following the guidance of the incomplete map of the nirvana demonic palace toward the southeast. He increased his speed to the limit, his figure flickering past jagged rocks and withered demonic plants.
He had to get away from the center of the vortex that was Filthy Earth Black City as quickly as possible!
The journey was uneventful, aside from occasionally dealing with a few blind, low-level demonic creatures. A few days later, the scenery began to change. The earth gradually turned from black to a sickly gray-white, and vegetation almost vanished, replaced by more and more dense... skeletons!
At first, they were only scattered here and there, but further southeast, the skeletons became more numerous, varying in size and shape. There were humanoid ones, beast-like ones, and many strange bones that were unrecognizable. Most of these skeletons were a ghastly white, as if all their essence had been drained by some power, piling up on the ground to form skin-crawling bone heaps. A faint Yin wind, carrying the scent of decay and death, began to permeate the air.
He had arrived at the White Bone Wasteland!
Ye Chen stopped at the edge of the wasteland. Looking out, the world was a sea of gray-white, with endless skeletons covering the earth and extending to the horizon. The sky was an eternal dim yellow, with low-hanging clouds moving slowly and casting distorted shadows. The wailing Yin wind brushed over the sea of bones, making a sound like the mourning of ten thousand ghosts that pierced deep into the Divine Soul.
He took out a soul-fixing talisman and slapped it onto himself. A cool sensation enveloped his Sea of Consciousness, dispersing most of the discomfort brought by the Yin wind. But even so, he could still feel the omnipresent Yin wind constantly attempting to erode his Protective Aura and Divine Soul, like water dripping through stone.
“soul-eroding yin wind... it truly lives up to its reputation.” Ye Chen’s expression was solemn. This was only the periphery of the wasteland, and the Yin wind was already this powerful. If he went deep into the core area, even the soul-fixing talisman might not last long.
He took out the incomplete map of the nirvana demonic palace again. Injecting a trace of Chaos Gang Qi, the dark red lines on the scroll lit up once more, and the demonic eye mark pointed firmly toward the depths of the wasteland. A winding route wove through countless skull marks representing danger, pointing toward the final destination—the Ancient Demon Burial Pit.
Without hesitation, Ye Chen stepped into this land of death.
His feet stepped on the brittle bone fragments, making a “kacha kacha” sound that was particularly piercing in the dead silence. The soul-eroding yin wind was like invisible knives, constantly cutting into his Protective Aura with a faint sizzling sound. He had to continuously circulate the Chaos Myriad Transformation Art, using Chaos Gang Qi to resist the erosion of the Yin wind, consuming far more energy than he would in the outside world.
After traveling about a hundred miles, the surroundings became even more deathly still. The skeletons grew larger, and he could even see giant beast bones like small mountains, making him wonder what kind of terrifying existences they were when alive. The power of the Yin wind also increased significantly, and the glow of the soul-fixing talisman began to dim.
Suddenly, from a relatively flat patch of bone ground ahead, came the sound of intense fighting and the roars of demonic creatures!
Ye Chen concealed his aura and quietly approached. He saw three Cultivators being besieged by a dozen skeletal creatures with ethereal blue Soul Fire burning in their eye sockets, wielding bone sabers and bone swords! These creatures moved swiftly and possessed considerable strength, roughly equivalent to Cultivators of the fourth or fifth level of the Earth Fiend Realm. Moreover, they seemed unaffected by the soul-eroding yin wind and could even harness it to enhance their attacks.
Among the three Cultivators, two men and one woman, the one with the highest cultivation was a burly man holding a long spear at the Earth Fiend Realm Sixth Level, while the other man and woman were both at the Earthly Fiend Realm Fifth Level. They stood back-to-back, resisting with all their might as spear shadows, sword light, and Talismans flashed continuously, repelling and shattering the lunging skeletal creatures. However, the creatures were numerous, and after being shattered, their scattered bones could slowly reassemble under the influence of the ethereal blue Soul Fire, as if they were immortal! All three were wounded and their auras were disordered, clearly struggling to hold on.
“They are ‘White Bone Demonic Soldiers’!” Ye Chen recognized the Origin of these creatures. They were the lowest-ranking troops under the command of the Bone Demon Lord, yet their tenacious nature made them a headache for many Cultivators.
He didn’t want to meddle in others' business and intended to bypass them. However, at that moment, the burly man at the Earth Fiend Realm Sixth Level was slashed by a White Bone Demon Soldiers's bone saber while shielding his companions, leaving a wound deep enough to see the bone. Blood instantly stained his robes, and his movements faltered. In an instant, three or four bone sabers and swords stabbed toward his vital points simultaneously!
He was about to perish on the spot—
“Chih!”
A gray sword qi, like a startling rainbow from beyond the heavens, arrived first despite being launched later, sweeping past with absolute precision!
“Kacha! Kacha! Kacha!”
The movements of those three or four White Bone Demon Soldierss suddenly froze, and then from head to toe, along with the bone sabers and swords in their hands, they instantly turned into powder! Even the ethereal blue Soul Fire was silently annihilated as the gray sword qi swept past!
This sudden turn of events stunned both the remaining White Bone Demon Soldierss and the three Cultivators.
Ye Chen’s figure appeared at the edge of the battlefield like a ghost, holding the guixu sword with a calm expression.
“Thank you, Senior, for saving our lives!” The injured burly man was the first to react. Enduring the pain, he quickly cupped his fists in gratitude, his face filled with the relief of surviving a disaster. The other man and woman also hurriedly bowed, their eyes full of gratitude and awe. They could feel the unfathomable aura emanating from Ye Chen, as well as the terrifying Nirvana Intent contained within that sword strike.
Ye Chen nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over the White Bone Demon Soldierss who were becoming restless due to the instant destruction of their companions. He discovered that the core of these Demonic Soldiers seemed to be that ethereal blue Soul Fire; as long as the Soul Fire wasn't extinguished, they could continuously reassemble. And his Chaos Sword Intent happened to be the nemesis of such Soul and energy bodies.
He no longer held back. Moving like a tiger among a flock of sheep, he swung the guixu sword, unleashing streaks of gray sword qi. Wherever the sword qi passed, the White Bone Demon Soldierss disintegrated and were annihilated like snow under sunlight, leaving them no chance to reassemble!
In just a few breaths, the remaining dozen or so White Bone Demon Soldierss were cleared away, leaving only a ground of even finer bone dust.
The three Cultivators watched in stunned silence, their gaze toward Ye Chen becoming even more reverent.
“Senior’s strength is heavenly, this Junior is full of admiration!” The burly man bowed again. “This Junior is Lin Kui, this is my younger sister Lin Wei, and this is our friend Zhao Ming. May I ask for Senior’s honorable name? We shall never forget this life-saving favor!”
“Just passing through,” Ye Chen replied flatly, his gaze falling on the wound on Lin Kui’s back. A trace of cold Death Qi lingered there, hindering the wound from healing. He flicked his finger, and a wisp of pure Chaos Qi entered Lin Kui's body.
Lin Kui felt a gentle and vast power circulate through him. The sharp pain in his back was instantly reduced by more than half, and the stubborn Death Qi was quickly dispersed as the wound began to heal slowly! He was even more shocked and thanked him once again.
Ye Chen looked at the three and asked, “What brings you deep into this place?” He needed to gather more intelligence about the wasteland.
Lin Kui did not dare to hide anything and hurriedly said, “To answer Senior, my sister, Brother Zhao, and I took a bounty mission from the ‘Flowing Fire Alliance’ to collect ‘Soul Yin Grass.’ We didn't expect to wander into this White Bone Demon Soldiers patrol zone and nearly lost our lives.”
Flowing Fire Alliance? Ye Chen noted the name; it seemed to be a significant Alliance of Loose Cultivators in Filthy Earth Black City. He continued to ask, “Has there been anything unusual in the wasteland recently? Any news regarding the Nirvana Demon Palace or... the Ancient Demon Burial Pit?”
The three of them exchanged looks, and Lin Kui lowered his voice. “Senior has heard of it too? Indeed, many people have flooded into the wasteland recently because of the rumors about the Demon Palace. It’s said that a few days ago, someone discovered a ruin near ‘Weeping Blood Valley’ that is suspected to be an outer entrance to the Demon Palace. It led to a struggle between several factions and many deaths. As for the Ancient Demon Burial Pit... that is the territory of the Demonic Generals under the command of the Bone Demon Lord. It’s said that security there has become even tighter recently, and anyone who approaches is killed on sight!”
Weeping Blood Valley? Ye Chen glanced at the incomplete map. That was not the route indicated, so it was likely just a smokescreen or an insignificant side path. His goal remained the Ancient Demon Burial Pit.
“Do you know how to deal with this soul-eroding yin wind? The deeper one goes, the stronger it becomes, and the soul-fixing talisman seems to have limited effect,” Ye Chen asked the crucial question.
Lin Kui gave a bitter smile. “To be honest with Senior, we only operate on the periphery, barely holding on with soul-fixing talismans and Heart-Clearing Pills. It’s said that to go deeper, one must either possess rare treasures that defend against Soul attacks or... rely on one's own powerful Divine Soul and will to endure it. There are rumors that some Cultivators who practiced special Soul Refining Cultivation Techniques can even use this Yin wind to temper their Divine Soul, but those are very few.”
Tempering the Divine Soul? Ye Chen’s heart stirred. His chaos ancestral talisman was impervious to all methods, and his Chaos Intent could protect his mind. Perhaps... he could try?
He asked no more and nodded to the three. “This is no place to linger. You should leave as soon as possible.”
“Yes! Thank you, Senior! Please take care, Senior!” Lin Kui and the others bowed again and hurriedly retreated toward the path they came from, not daring to stay any longer.
Ye Chen watched them disappear into the sea of bones and then turned his gaze back toward the depths of the wasteland. The soul-eroding yin wind howled, carrying a bone-chilling cold and Soul-level erosion.
He took a deep breath. Instead of strengthening his defense, he slowly retracted part of his Protective Aura, actively allowing a trace of the soul-eroding yin wind to penetrate his defense and touch his Divine Sense!
“Buzz!”
A needle-like stinging pain instantly struck! The Yin wind felt as if it had countless tiny, cold teeth gnawing at his Divine Thought!
Ye Chen let out a muffled groan, his face turning slightly pale. But his eyes grew even brighter! He fully operated the Chaos Myriad Transformation Art, and the chaos ancestral talisman deep within his Qi Sea emitted a hazy, clear radiance, protecting his Divine Soul Origin while guiding the power of the invading Yin wind in a mysterious and profound way to temper and polish his Divine Sense!
It was painful, but effective!
He felt that under the erosion of the Yin wind, although the total volume of his Divine Sense was slowly being consumed, the remaining portion became more condensed and pure, and his perception became sharper!
This soul-eroding yin wind was a disaster for others, but for him, it was a natural furnace for tempering the Divine Soul!
He no longer hesitated. While advancing according to the guidance of the incomplete map, he actively guided an appropriate amount of soul-eroding yin wind to continuously temper his Divine Sense and will.
His steps moved firmly toward that Forbidden Ground of death known as the Ancient Demon Burial Pit.