108: My first experience in the spirit world! Did I fall into a cesspool?

"Buzz—"

The intense sensation of space tearing almost made Gu Yang faint. It felt as if a pair of invisible giant hands had grabbed his Soul and were wringing it like a wet towel. Colorful spatial turbulence streaked past his eyes, each flash of light representing a terrifying power of Law capable of shredding mountains.

When he regained consciousness, he felt his body lose control, falling at an incredible speed. The wind whistling in his ears was as sharp as a ghost's howl; it was the sonic boom produced by his Physical Body rubbing against the high-density Spiritual Qi.

"Bang!"

A dull, heavy thud.

Gu Yang crashed heavily onto a soft but surprisingly hot and... foul-smelling object. The massive impact caused his entire body to sink in, leaving only his feet twitching on the outside.

"Cough, cough... Blegh..."

Gu Yang struggled to crawl out of the deep pit. Just as he took a breath, he was nearly knocked unconscious by the stench.

This smell was simply incredible!

It was pungent and sour, mixed with the strong scent of sulfur, the smell of meat that had been rotting for centuries, the smell of scorched herbs, and even a metallic, rusty fishiness. This mixture of gases seemed alive, rushing up his nostrils straight to the top of his head. It was a hundred times more overwhelming than Gu Yang's unwashed socks from his days in the Mortal Realm, making his eyes water instantly.

He wiped his face and found his hands covered in a black, viscous sludge like asphalt, which even carried a strange warmth.

"Did I... fall into a cesspool?"

Gu Yang's face darkened as he looked at his pathetic state.

The number one person in the Lower Realm, the Ultimate Heavenly Demon who could tear apart Soul Transformation experts and trample Martial Saints, had ended up like this after Ascension? If his subordinates saw this, what would become of the lifelong reputation of "Old Demon Gu"?

He looked up, enduring the nausea to observe his surroundings.

This was a massive valley surrounded by thousand-fathom-high cliffs as smooth as mirrors, carved with dense Restriction runes. Only a sliver of light filtered down from above, making the place feel oppressive and gloomy.

Throughout the valley, there were piles of colorful "trash mountains."

Some peaks emitted green, toxic smoke that hissed as it corroded the air; others burned with eternal black flames, radiating a heart-palpitating heat; still others flowed with colorful corrosive acidic water, gathering into bubbling poisonous rivers.

The air here was as heavy and viscous as mercury, and the gravity was a thousand times that of the Lower Realm!

Gu Yang felt as if he were carrying an ancient divine mountain. His bones creaked in protest under the terrifying pressure, and every finger movement required immense physical effort.

[System self-check in progress...]

[Current Location: Spirit Realm · Nanhuang Region · Medicine God Valley (Abandoned Pill Dregs Dumping Ground).]

[Environmental Analysis: High-concentration medicinal poison environment, containing violent Spiritual Qi, remnants of Laws, and unknown mixed toxins. Survival rate for ordinary organisms: 0%.]

[Current Status: Energy depleted (0.1%), Physical Body suppressed by high-dimensional Laws, extremely weak. Immediate energy replenishment recommended!]

"Medicine God Valley? Pill Dregs?"

Gu Yang was stunned for a moment, then his gaze toward the black "sludge" beneath his feet gradually changed.

He reached out, grabbed a handful of the viscous substance, and sniffed it carefully.

Although the stench was suffocating, beneath it lay an extremely rich, violent, and complex medicinal fragrance and energy fluctuation! This energy density was higher than any Heaven And Earth Treasure he had ever consumed!

"This isn't waste; these are... Failed Pills? The essence remnants left after failed Alchemy?"

Failed Pills were the byproduct of unsuccessful Alchemy in the cultivation world. Due to conflicting medicinal properties, improper heat, furnace explosions, or too many Impurities, these pills were often highly toxic and extremely unstable. Ordinary Cultivators would have their Meridians shattered and bodies explode after eating just one; they wouldn't even dare touch them.

But for Gu Yang, who possessed the Five Elements Primordial Body and the Five Elements Great Millstone... "Toxins? Isn't that just a punchy, spicy flavor?"

"Impurities? Aren't those just dietary fibers that are a bit hard on the teeth?"

"Conflicting medicinal properties? Isn't that what you call a rich layer of flavors?"

Gu Yang's eyes instantly lit up, their glow brighter than the sliver of light above, like two green searchlights.

How was this a junkyard?

This was clearly a Manchu Han Imperial Feast prepared for him by the heavens!

Every trash mountain here was formed from the essence of countless failed high-level Spirit Medicines! Though toxic and violent, the energy was absolutely off the charts! These were gold mines waiting to be excavated!

"Gurgle..."

Gu Yang's stomach let out a series of thunderous protests, a signal of extreme hunger.

Crossing the boundary wall had exhausted nearly all his energy reserves. Now, every cell in his body was screaming "hungry, hungry, hungry." Even if a whole cow were placed before him, he could swallow it whole, hide and bones included.

"Whatever, I'll fill my stomach first! If I die, I die; being a well-fed ghost is better than starving to death!"

Gu Yang reached into the "sludge" at his feet and dug out a fist-sized Failed Pill. It was purplish-black, its surface pitted and emitting wisps of toxic smoke. It looked like a charred, moldy bun and gave off a nauseating burnt smell.

He opened his mouth wide, revealing a set of pearly white teeth.

"Chomp!"

He took a fierce bite.

"Sizzle—"

The moment the Failed Pill entered his mouth, it wasn't the softness of food, but a scalding torrent like molten lava!

The violent medicinal power, carrying strong corrosiveness and intense fire poison, exploded in his mouth and rushed down his throat. Gu Yang's tongue went numb instantly, and the inner walls of his mouth even made a searing sound.

If it were an ordinary person, half their head would have probably melted by now.

But Gu Yang's eyes widened, and a distorted yet blissful expression appeared on his face.

"Hiss—! Powerful! This flavor is so intense!"

"This texture... crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, like... a high-explosive grenade flavored like spicy crawfish? It pricks the mouth a bit, but the more I chew, the more fragrant it gets!"

He endured the agonizing pain that felt like swallowing knives, his Adam's apple bobbing as he forced the mass of fire poison down.

[Devoured Tier 3 Failed Pill (Fire Poison Attribute)!]

[Five Elements Great Millstone operating at full speed... Violently crushing toxins... Converting...]

[Energy +800!]

[Physical Body Poison Resistance +1!]

[Fire Attribute Law Affinity slightly increased!]

"Only 800?"

Gu Yang curled his lip. Although this energy density was higher than a Top-Grade Spirit Stone from the Lower Realm, it was still a drop in the bucket for his body, which was as dry as a desert.

"This amount isn't even enough to rinse my mouth!"

He looked up, his gaze greedily scanning the entire valley.

Finally, his eyes locked onto the nearby hundred-meter-high "green trash mountain."

It was formed from countless failed Wood-Attribute Medicinal Pills and rotting high-level Spiritual Plants, emitting a thick, tangible sour smell. The surface was even covered in a layer of strange, colorful fungal spots.

"That green one... smells sour, it must be pickled vegetable flavor, right? Just right to cut through the grease."

Gu Yang dragged his heavy body and shuffled over step by step.

Although the thousand-fold gravity suppression made him move as slowly as a turtle, leaving deep footprints with every step, the temptation of food gave him infinite motivation.

Using both hands and feet like a giant gecko, he climbed the "green trash mountain."

He used both hands to grab handfuls of Failed Pills and stuff them into his mouth.

"Crunch! Crunch! Gulp!"

One by one, the toxic Failed Pills—which could poison a Golden Core Cultivator to death and make a Nascent Soul Cultivator avoid them at all costs—were tossed into his mouth like peanuts, crunching as he chewed.

"This one's a bit sour, appetizing, not bad!"

"This one's a bit bitter, good for clearing heat, acceptable!"

"Eh? This one is actually sweet? And it bursts? The liquid flowing out is... corrosive poison? Nice! Like a bursting beef ball!"

As a large number of Failed Pills entered his stomach, Gu Yang's body, which had been somewhat shriveled due to energy depletion, began to fill out at a visible rate.

The Five Elements Primordial Body inside him felt like a rusty machine being injected with lubricant, starting to operate wildly with a thunderous roar. The five-colored millstone in his Dantian spun rapidly, forcibly crushing and purifying the miscellaneous, violent, and destructive medicinal power, finally converting it into the purest blood-qi to nourish his parched Meridians.

A faint, shifting five-colored glow began to appear on the surface of his skin.

That wasn't an ordinary protective Spiritual Light, but his Physical Body rapidly evolving and adapting to resist the terrifying pill toxins, automatically generating the prototype of an "Immunity to Ten Thousand Poisons" shield!

"Delicious! So delicious!"

"The food in the Spirit Realm is indeed much better than in the Lower Realm! Even the trash is so nutritious! If these were proper Medicinal Pills, how much of a boost would they give?"

Gu Yang ate while moved to tears (actually, his eyes were red from the toxic smoke).

Inside his robes, Ergou, who had been playing dead, poked out its little head.

It twitched its nose, sniffed the suffocating mixed toxic gas, gave a large, disgusted sneeze, and hurriedly covered its nose with its front paws, shrinking back into Gu Yang's embrace with only a pair of eyes full of disdain visible.

"Awoo..." (Big brother, are you eating poop? It stinks so much... Is this the Spirit Realm delicacy you talked about?)

"What do you know!"

Gu Yang slapped it back down and stuffed a Hard as Rock failed Mineral Pill into its mouth to shut it up.

"This is called... dark cuisine! It's art! Go back to eating your rocks!"