Cang Clan Remnants

With his strength initially recovered and the potent poison within his body transformed for his own use, Nightmare's state of mind also calmed down. He pushed open the wooden door; the morning mist shrouded the tranquil village, and the air was filled with the fresh scent of grass and earth, as if last night's life-and-death struggle had merely been an illusory dream.

Azure Glass seemed to have anticipated his appearance at this time, standing quietly not far outside the house. Her pale purple eyes fell upon him, a flicker of imperceptible surprise passing through them, seemingly astonished that he could suppress the poison so quickly and even show signs of improvement.

"It seems you've pulled through," she said, her tone still flat.

"Thank you for the medicine and... the method," Nightmare said, his voice still a bit hoarse but having regained its usual composure. "Now, tell me the three things you need me to do."

He disliked owing favors, especially favors to people from such a mysterious force; the sooner they were settled, the better.

Azure Glass nodded, not elaborating further: "The first thing, a pack of 'Bone-Eating Wolves' has appeared on the other side of the river valley east of the village. Their leader is a Wolf King on the verge of breaking through to Middle Stage Demonic Core (equivalent to Middle Golden Core), and it frequently attacks villagers and livestock crossing the river. Go and deal with them."

It was a very direct request, like a test of his strength.

Nightmare did not refuse. It was a good opportunity to test the power of his newly acquired Myriad Poison Demonic Body.

His figure moved, transforming into a faint, almost invisible phantom, and he swept towards the east of the village. Although his speed was not at its Peak due to his injuries not being fully recovered, it possessed an added sense of eerie unpredictability.

The river valley was not far; howls could be heard from a distance. A pack of demonic wolves with grey-black fur and sharp fangs was lurking by the river, numbering about twenty to thirty. The leading Wolf King was exceptionally large, with a tuft of silver fur on its forehead, and its eyes gleamed with cruel cunning.

Nightmare did not conceal his presence but appeared directly on the opposite bank.

The wolf pack immediately spotted him, letting out threatening growls. The silver-furred Wolf King bared its fangs, leading several robust male wolves, and charged directly across the shallow water, a A foul wind swept through.! (a foul wind assailing his face!)

If it had been before, Nightmare might have chosen to engage in a mobile fight or use Soul Shattering Finger to defeat them one by one. But now, he simply wanted to test his new power.

He did not dodge or evade but charged towards the Wolf King! Just as the Wolf King leaped to pounce, his right index finger shot out like lightning!

On his fingertip, a dark green poisonous glow flashed and disappeared!

Soul Shattering Finger! But this time, the finger force contained not pure Soul Shattering Demonic Essence, but was mixed with the sharp Xiangliu Poison!

Pfft!

The finger strike accurately landed on the Wolf King's forehead!

"Awoo—!"

The Wolf King let out an extremely mournful howl, its pouncing motion instantly stiffened, and it fell heavily to the ground! Its forehead was not pierced, not even its fur was damaged, but a terrifying dark green color spread from the point of impact at a visible speed, instantly covering its entire head!

In just one breath, this fierce Wolf King began to bleed black-green poisonous blood from its seven orifices, its body convulsing, and its breath instantly ceased! Not even its demonic Soul managed to escape, being directly corroded and annihilated by the poison!

The remaining demonic wolves were scared Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, whimpering and turning to flee.

Nightmare's figure shot out like a ghost, his ten fingers rapidly flicking, and streaks of subtle poisonous demonic finger wind, like a rain of death, accurately entered the bodies of every demonic wolf attempting to escape.

After a few breaths, silence returned to the river valley.

All the demonic wolves had fallen dead, their bodies rapidly turning black and decaying, emitting a pungent, foul odor.

Nightmare stood in place, slightly panting. Using this poisonous Demonic Essence seemed to consume more mental energy and Demonic Essence, but its power was indeed terrifying! The destructive power of this Xiangliu Poison against living beings was simply horrifying.

[Ding! Killed the Bone-Eating Wolf pack, gained a small amount of villain points +150.]

He cleaned up the scene and returned to the village.

Azure Glass was still waiting in the same spot, as if she had never left. She glanced at the faint, almost imperceptible pale green poisonous Qi around Nightmare, and a hint of understanding flashed deep within her pale purple eyes.

"Very efficient," she commented, her tone betraying no emotion. "The second thing, in the 'Black Pool' west of the village, many fish have inexplicably died recently, and the pool water has become murky and foul-smelling. Witch Grandfather suspects something unclean has come to the bottom of the pool. Go investigate and deal with it."

Nightmare frowned slightly. This task sounded a bit strange, not like fighting, but more like... pollution investigation?

He didn't ask further, turning again and heading west of the village.

The Black Pool was a deep pool formed by a bottomless underground spring, usually one of the villagers' water sources. At this moment, the pool water was indeed murky, emitting a faint putrid smell, and some dead fish with white bellies floated by the shore.

Nightmare's Divine Sense probed into the pool, and he immediately felt a cold, viscous evil Qi lingering at the bottom. He plunged into the pool, and the deeper he went, the heavier the evil Qi became, and the dimmer the light.

Finally, in the mud at the bottom of the pool, he discovered a palm-sized fragment of bone, constantly seeping black viscous liquid and emitting intense resentment and Death Qi! The evil Qi was emanating from this very bone fragment!

"Is this... a bone fragment left behind after the death of some powerful demonic creature or evil cultivator?" Nightmare's heart stirred, sensing that the sinister energy contained within this bone fragment was polluting the water source.

He tried to grasp it with his palm enveloped in Demonic Essence, but the bone fragment suddenly burst forth with a black light, and a life-devouring Death Qi counterattacked along his Demonic Essence!

Nightmare snorted coldly, his poisonous Demonic Essence swirling at his fingertips, actively meeting the Death Qi!

Hiss, hiss, hiss!

The utterly sinister and evil Xiangliu Poison and the foul Death Qi corroded and wore each other down, making a teeth-grinding sound. A moment later, that Death Qi was completely neutralized and dissolved by the more overbearing Xiangliu Poison!

Nightmare easily fished out the lusterless bone fragment. Once out of the water, the bone fragment's polluting effect greatly diminished.

"It seems this poison is unexpectedly effective against these sinister and evil things," he returned to the shore and handed the bone fragment to Azure Glass.

Azure Glass took the bone fragment, examined it carefully, and subtly furrowed her brow: "It's the remains of a 'Filth Spirit.' It seems there's an unstable spatial area nearby, connected to some filthy place. I will inform Witch Grandfather about this matter."

She put away the bone fragment and looked at Nightmare: "There's one last thing left."

She raised her finger, pointing towards the mountain range behind the village, shrouded in dense mist and unsettling—"Enter the Forbidden Ground and bring back three pieces of 'Dragon Blood Moss.'"

Nightmare's pupils contracted slightly.

It finally came. This was the main event. The first two tasks were merely preludes and tests; this third task was the true purpose of this Lost Village? They wanted to use him to enter a Forbidden Ground that even they seemed to be wary of?

"What's in the Forbidden Ground?" Nightmare asked in a deep voice.

"I don't know," Azure Glass's answer was unexpected. "The Forbidden Ground is a place strictly forbidden by ancestral teachings. No one knows what's inside. We only know that Dragon Blood Moss grows on its edges, which is a key ingredient for refining certain important medicines in the village. In the past, when the mist on the outskirts of the Forbidden Ground occasionally dispersed, the fastest person would risk quickly picking a small amount. But in recent years, the mist has not dispersed again, and the Dragon Blood Moss is about to run out."

Her explanation was reasonable, but Nightmare didn't believe a word of it. This village was strange in every way; it was impossible for them to know nothing about a Forbidden Ground they had guarded for generations.

But he had no choice. This was a deal.

"Alright," Nightmare agreed. "But I need a detailed map of the Forbidden Ground's periphery and all the information you know."

Azure Glass seemed to have prepared for this, handing over an ancient beast-skin scroll: "This is a map of the Forbidden Ground's periphery, marking relatively safe routes and areas where Dragon Blood Moss might grow. As for the interior, the map is blank. We only know that the mist permeating the Forbidden Ground can erode one's mind, distort perception, and unknown dangers exist. Take care of yourself."

Nightmare took the beast-skin scroll, gave Azure Glass a deep look, and turned to walk towards the Forbidden Ground in the back mountains.

Watching his back disappear into the dense forest, a highly complex ripple appeared in Azure Glass's calm eyes. She murmured to herself, her voice so soft that only she could hear it:

"Azure Qi and Blood... Myriad Poison Demonic Body... perhaps... you can truly reach that place... and verify Witch Grandfather's prophecy..."

Nightmare followed the guidance of the beast-skin scroll and soon arrived at the edge of the Forbidden Ground.

The mist before him was denser than that of the Cloud Dream Great Marsh, with an eerie greyish-white color, like solidified time. His Divine Sense probed into it, immediately feeling strong sluggishness and distortion, and even a sense of being "watched."

He took his last Stealth Pill, activated the Breath Concealment Art, and suppressed his aura to the extreme, then cautiously stepped into the grey mist.

Upon entering the mist, heaven and earth abruptly changed.

All external sounds completely vanished, leaving only the sound of his own heartbeat. The mist wrapped around him, icy cold, constantly trying to penetrate his pores and erode his Divine Soul. But this time, the Myriad Poison Demonic Body, refined by Xiangliu Poison, played its role; those corrosive energies, upon touching his poison-infused Demonic Essence, were all counteracted or even assimilated.

The Flowing Cloud Illusory Annihilation Art's Mind-Cultivation Technique automatically circulated, allowing him to maintain a shred of mental clarity in this perception-distorting environment, not easily misled by illusions.

He proceeded cautiously according to the map. Along the way, he saw some dilapidated ancient architectural ruins, similar in style to Immortal Master Flowing Cloud's Immortal Cave but even older. He also sensed some dangerous auras hidden in the mist, some cold, some violent, but he carefully avoided them all.

Finally, on a damp stone wall beneath a cliff, he saw several pieces of dark red moss, like solidified blood, emitting a faint Dragon might and rich Qi and Blood energy—Dragon Blood Moss.

He quickly went forward, picked three pieces, and carefully put them away.

With the task complete, he should have left immediately.

But his gaze was drawn to a faint dark golden light deeper in the mist, above the cliff.

That light gave him an incredibly familiar feeling—it was of the same origin as the Azure Qi and Blood within him, but even purer and more ancient!

Immortal Master Flowing Cloud's mention of "this world's Heavenly Dao is incomplete," "ancient great war," "Heavenly Dao fragments"... and this mysterious village's guarded Forbidden Ground... all these clues connected in his mind.

Could it be that the depths of this Forbidden Ground were actually related to the Cang Clan, or rather, to that ancient great war that led to the Heavenly Dao's incompleteness?

Strong curiosity and the desire to uncover the truth overcame his caution.

He took a deep breath, circulated the Azure Qi and Blood to protect his heart pulse (heart meridian), held the now useless token left by Immortal Master Flowing Cloud (perhaps it could provide some sensation), and cautiously ventured deeper in the direction of the dark golden light.

The deeper he went, the stronger the corrosive power in the mist became, even beginning to produce various terrifying mental attack illusions. But the combination of Azure Qi and Blood and Myriad Poison Demonic Body allowed him to barely resist.

He didn't know how long he walked until the mist ahead suddenly thinned.

He found himself standing on the edge of a massive, impact crater-like ring mountain!

The center of the ring mountain was not a pit, but a twisted and shattered space, like a broken mirror! Within those spatial fragments, suspended was an incredibly massive, incomplete, dark golden skeleton, emitting endless sorrow and an ancient aura!

The skeleton's shape was neither human nor beast, like the finger bone of some giant god! And the dark golden light that had attracted him was emanating from this very skeleton!

Just by gazing at the skeleton from afar, Nightmare felt the Azure Qi and Blood within him boiling and resonating wildly! A surge of sorrow and anger, originating from the depths of his Bloodline, welled up in his heart!

At the same time, he also saw nine colossal black stone pillars standing at the bottom of the ring mountain, covered with countless Seal runes! The stone pillars formed a profound great array, emitting a terrifying power that suppressed all things, firmly sealing that finger bone in the shattered space!

This was... a Seal! Someone was sealing this Cang Clan finger bone!

Nightmare instantly understood the true nature of this so-called "Forbidden Ground"! He also vaguely guessed what the "ancient covenant" guarded by the Lost Village was—they were the guardians of this Seal!

Just then, the sealed finger bone seemed to sense his arrival and suddenly trembled!

A faint but incredibly clear and mournful thought, transcending the Void Realm, directly entered Nightmare's mind:

"Clan... member..."

"Run... quick, run..."

"Heavenly Dao... has betrayed... They... are coming..."

The thoughts were intermittent, filled with endless despair and warning!

Immediately after, the nine sealing stone pillars seemed to be enraged, erupting with monstrous black light! A terrifying suppressive force descended with a roar!

Nightmare was struck heavily, spitting out a mouthful of blood with a "wah" sound, his body uncontrollably flying backward!

He forcefully stabilized himself, turned without hesitation, activated the Demonic Shadow Evasion Technique to its extreme, and frantically fled outwards!

Behind him, the entire ring mountain rumbled, and the power of the Seal stirred the mist, forming a terrifying vortex, as if some horrifying existence was about to be awakened!

Nightmare fled desperately, but his heart was in turmoil!

Cang Clan finger bone! Ancient Seal! Heavenly Dao has betrayed! They are coming!

The secret guarded by this Lost Village was far more astonishing than imagined! This even involved the root cause of this world's incomplete Heavenly Dao!

He had to leave here immediately!

When he finally stumbled out of the Forbidden Ground's mist-shrouded area, he found Azure Glass standing outside, seemingly having waited for a long time.

She looked at Nightmare's pale face and the bloodstains at the corner of his mouth, and also sensed the abnormal vibrations coming from within the Forbidden Ground. A complex emotion flashed in her pale purple eyes, but she didn't ask further, merely extending her hand.

"Dragon Blood Moss."

Nightmare suppressed the tumultuous waves in his heart, placed the three pieces of Dragon Blood Moss in her hand, and said hoarsely: "The three tasks are done, we owe each other nothing. I will leave immediately."

Azure Glass put away the Dragon Blood Moss, remained silent for a moment, and then suddenly said: "Witch Grandfather asked me to convey a message to you."

"What message?"

"The Gui Xu Sea Eye is the end and also the beginning of all answers. But beware of The Fisherman."

The Fisherman?

Nightmare's gaze sharpened. He took a deep look at Azure Glass and the mist-shrouded Forbidden Ground, said no more, turned into a streak of light, and swiftly fled into the distance without hesitation.

This village, this Forbidden Ground, hid too great a secret; at his current stage, he was not qualified to explore it.

But the Gui Xu Sea Eye, he had to go!

Not only did it hold the opportunity to resolve the conflict in his Cultivation Technique, but it might also contain the answers about the Heavenly Dao, the Cang Clan, and the truth behind all of this!

Behind him, the vibrations in the Forbidden Ground slowly subsided.

Azure Glass stood in place, gazing at the vanishing horizon, unmoving for a long time.

A hunched figure, like a ghost, appeared silently beside her, cloaked in a thick hood, its face obscured. Only an old, hoarse voice could be heard:

"The seed... has been sown... whether it can grow into a Azure Wood that tears through the night under the 'Fisherman's' hook... depends on his fortune..."

"We... can only wait..."

The voice gradually faded into the wind.

The mountain wind howled, blowing Azure Glass's silver-white long hair. Her eyes looked into the distance, still calm, yet seemingly reflecting a deeper torrent of fate.