Chapter 1462: Mysterious Mountain Range

This great canyon, the further forward one flies, the deeper underground it seems to go. Ahead, a vast expanse of gloom stretches, utterly devoid of light, as if it leads straight to the Nine Nether Yellow Springs.

Yet all the Chìróng tribespeople have their eyes flashing with astonishing red light, and even in the darkness they can see objects as clearly as if it were day, each one unusually calm.

Not long after, a strange, eerie cry echoes from the darkness ahead, and a vast mass of black things swarms out in a frenzy—actually a flock of monstrous bats the size of large birds, with purple-red eyes, emitting shrill squeaks as they swoop toward the Zhùróng tribe party.

Zhùyīnzǐ flies at the very front; upon seeing these bats' ferocious momentum, his face shows no expression, but the wings on his back suddenly tremble violently.

Innumerable feathers blast 'shot' forth, sweeping forward in a wide arc.

Red light flashes, and the feathers transform into countless fire-arrows, flashing through the bat swarm in an instant, piercing straight through.

With a 'Boom—rumble' of violent sound, the bats all burst into balls of fire and plummet from midair, not a single one escaping.

The Zhùróng tribe party does not pause in the slightest; their escape lights flash and in the blink of an eye they vanish into the darkness.

As long as they continue flying along this canyon, after one day and one night they will safely reach the second layer of the Dìyuān.

……

On a vast expanse of crimson 'colored' land, a huge black shadow flashes past from above, flying by in a panicked, fleeing manner.

And not long after this black shadow has flown past, the horizon flickers with spiritual light, and another ten or so clusters of various 'colored' spiritual light flash into existence, drifting and flashing toward this side.

The people in this group have different feathered wings on their backs, but all bear black 'colored' tattoos on their faces—they are in fact the people of the Qīyuè tribe, known as the first branch of the Fēilíng tribe.

The gaunt young girl flying at the very edge is precisely Áo Qīngcǐ, who has caused all the holy sons to glance sideways at her.

This girl gazes at the distant, faintly visible black shadow fleeing in disarray, a hint of a cold smile playing at the corner of her mouth, leisurely and unhurriedly giving chase.

"Áo Shījiě, the direction this Golden-Toothed Beast is fleeing deviates somewhat from our intended path to the second layer's entrance. Should we not follow it down, but instead slay it here?" After pursuing for a while, among the holy sons of the Qīyuè tribe following behind, a burly man finally could not hold back and spoke up.

"What's the rush! If we encounter a herd of mid-level demonic beasts like Golden-Toothed Beasts on the first layer of the Dìyuān, we naturally ought to wipe them all out in one go. Or do you think that following me down to the next layer later will prevent us from completing the trial?" The girl does not turn her head, speaking without emotion.

"No, little brother absolutely has no such thought. I'm merely afraid the Netherflame Fruit will be snatched up first by other branches." The burly man startles, explaining repeatedly.

"If we are indeed too late, we can just snatch it back from the other branches. If that truly fails, the fourth layer of the Dìyuān certainly has plenty of this fruit. At worst, we spend more time and go down another layer." Áo Qīng lets out a cold laugh, offering a noncommittal reply.

Upon hearing this, the burly man's mouth corners twitch, and he dare not interject anything further.

Thus, the party fixes their gaze on the distant, frantically fleeing black shadow, following it in this unhurried manner, like a cat toying with a mouse.

……

Amidst a chaotic 'mess' of stone piles, three Fēilíng tribe members with blue 'colored' feathered wings on their backs and scaled faces are frenziedly attacking a dark demonic beast two zhang tall, with a deer's head and a human body, without cease.

This demonic beast rolls with black vapors, wielding a black 'colored' great fork in its hands; one person matches the strength of several Fēilíng tribe holy sons, showing no sign of weakening. On the contrary, it grows fiercer the longer the fight goes on.

The three Fēilíng tribe holy sons besieging it secretly groan in distress.

This is merely the first layer of the Dìyuān, yet this deer-faced demon—a high-level demonic beast that should only appear on the third layer—how could it appear here?

However, since this evil demon that loves to devour flesh and blood has fixed its gaze on them, these three have no choice but to fight desperately.

Elsewhere, most of the Fēilíng tribe holy sons on the first layer have encountered unexpected troubles. But some have fared unusually well, having found nearby branches leading to the second layer's entrance, and like the Chìróng tribe, have begun to step onto the path into the second layer.

At this time, Hán Lì, in order to avoid the unfriendly branches of the Tiān Péng tribe, has been forced to seek the most remote entrance, driving his spirit carriage with Léi Lán and Báibì, flying in escape for most of a day.

Whether it is due to the concealment restrictions on this carriage being truly effective, or whether the demonic beasts on this route were originally few, their journey ahead has encountered no trouble. After flying another two days and two nights, passing through two dense forests and a hilly region, they have entered the deeper parts of the first layer of the Dìyuān.

Given this escape speed of the spirit carriage and such smooth progress, they should need only about another day's time to reach the entrance to the second layer.

Léi Lán and Báibì are extremely delighted by this.

However, after flying another tens of thousands of li, ahead suddenly appears a vast expanse of blackish underground mountain range.

Startled, the three have no choice but to bring the spirit carriage to a halt.

"According to the map markings, this should be a plain—how could there be a mountain range?" Báibì stands in the carriage, staring at the colossal mountain blocking the road ahead, murmuring.

Léi Lán also looks somewhat dazed.

Gazing into the distance, the mountain peaks of this range are mostly extremely tall, with some peaks' tips directly 'inserting' into the uppermost part of the underground world, leaving only some gaps on either side of certain summits through which one can pass, forming a narrow fissure that makes one's heart feel 'creepy' upon seeing it.

No one knows how long this mountain range extends, nor whether anything strange lies beyond it.

Hán Lì narrows his eyes, then suddenly his body sways—he leaps from the spirit carriage and lands on the nearby ground, lowering his head to carefully observe something.

Seeing Hán Lì's action, Léi Lán and Báibì are somewhat surprised, but after exchanging a glance, they also fly out of the spirit carriage and land beside Hán Lì.

"Judging by the traces nearby, this mountain range should have appeared only in the last century or so, most likely having been moved here by someone using **power." Hán Lì lets out a long breath and speaks slowly.

"Moving mountains!" Léi Lán's complexion 'color' turns somewhat deathly pale, and Báibì's expression also becomes somewhat unpleasant.

"Correct, and not just one peak—the entire mountain range has been relocated here by human hands. However, there's no need to be overly alarmed. Such divine ability, even if possessed by a demon king of the deepest underground layers, could not be accomplished out of thin air. Most likely, they relied on some treasure or a prohibited formation. Otherwise, it would mean that a true living spirit-level demonic beast has actually appeared in the deepest layer of the Dìyuān." Hán Lì gives a faint smile.

"Ah, I see." Báibì, as a holy son of the Tiān Péng tribe, is also a person of extraordinary insight; after a moment's reflection, he too suddenly understands.

"Even so, the situation here is not quite right. The sand we passed through earlier also appeared suddenly. What other purpose could the Dìyuān demonic beasts have in doing this?" Léi Lán 'reveals' a worried 'color'.

"Perhaps it's the influence of the demon 'tide' eruption. Even if not for that, whatever other reason, the Dìyuān trial cannot possibly be canceled. We cannot go through official channels for this matter; we can only hurry to the third layer, obtain the Netherflame Fruit and return immediately, then report this to the clan." Hán Lì is neither anxious nor impatient—after all, such sudden occurrences have not been few in his past experiences.

"What Hán brother says is also true. But this mountain range likely harbors some strangeness; if we fly through the gaps at the mountain tops, we don't know what kind of danger we might encounter. If we go around from the two sides..." Báibì says, saying this, he begins to hesitate.

"Going around from the two sides is absolutely impossible." Léi Lán rejects outright, then proceeds to analyze:

"According to the markings on the map, the two sides of this region: one side is the Dìyuān wind belt. The Dìyuān winds there are not merely the mild force we encountered earlier; their ferocity and the extreme cold they contain are sufficient to turn us into ice pillars, eternally trapped within—it is a well-known forbidden zone on the first layer. And the other side is not exactly a friendly place either—it is the nest 'cavity' of the black abyss flying ants on the first layer, a place most difficult to provoke, inhabited by hundreds of thousands of flying ants. With our cultivation levels, barging in there cannot be said to be a nine-deaths-one-life scenario; there is also a half chance we would never be able to get out."

"So put that way, our only option is to take the risk and pass through this region." Gazing at the blackish mountain range ahead, Hán Lì 'rubs' 'rubs' his chin, muttering to himself.

"That's not necessarily the case—if one is willing to take a larger detour, one can also go around via another route. But the time wasted on the way would at least consume seven or eight days. For our search for the Netherflame Fruit, that would be highly disadvantageous." Léi Lán hesitates.

Hán Lì, however, his eyes flash as he gazes at the distant mountain range, sinking into silent contemplation.

At this moment, Báibì and Léi Lán also fall silent, it seems they have entrusted the decision entirely to Hán Lì.

"This mountain range gives me a very strange feeling. If we really pass through it, what great danger might we encounter through deceit? By the time we manage to break out of the mountain range, we fear our magic power would be damaged, unfavorable for the trials below. As for delaying a few days before descending to the second layer, that is of no consequence. Having these days to delay, on the contrary, would allow those branches intent on targeting us to have no doubt about our route. Furthermore, with so many trial participants, the second layer would fundamentally not have many Netherflame Fruits left to find—I originally intended to take you to the third layer. Come on, wasting a bit more time is better than truly facing an unknown danger." Hán Lì finally speaks, then his body sways and he transforms into a streak of green light, flying back into the spirit carriage.

Seeing this, Léi Lán and Báibì exchange a few sound transmissions, then finally also soar up and land on the spirit carriage.

"Hán brother, why don't we discuss this a bit more? Perhaps this mountain is not as dangerous as imagined." Báibì plants both feet on the spirit carriage, unable to hold back from saying this.

Although he feels Hán Lì's words make some sense, delaying for such a long time still makes him unable to suppress a deep sense of regret.

"No need to think further—I will not enter this mountain range." Hán Lì utters a light sentence, completely blocking Báibì's further劝说, then taps his foot lightly on the triangular spirit carriage beneath him.

With a 'Swoosh' sound, this carriage transforms into a mass of spiritual light, shooting like a meteor toward a lateral direction.

Seeing Hán Lì's resolute demeanor, not only does Báibì sigh and say nothing more, but Léi Lán also closes her mouth and remains silent.

No one knew that Han Li, whose heart was in turmoil under the hesitant gazes of the two holy sons, was in such a state.

A thread of his divine sense was connected to the wailing soul beast on the spirit beast ring, soothing the beast's restless and agitated emotions, while he silently muttered to himself without cease.

From the moment he first approached this mountain range, the wailing soul pearl within his body suddenly heated up. Startled, he hastily contacted the wailing soul beast within the spirit beast ring, only to find the beast behaving abnormally—restlessly shifting in the ring and letting out continuous low growls.

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