Chapter 298: The Black River of Evil Thoughts

The deepest part of the Dark Cave.

The world here seemed to be in a state of fragmentation; the energy of heaven and earth was extremely violent and terrifying, frequently transforming into various natural disasters. Earth, water, wind, and fire surged together. Under natural disasters of this level, even a Marquis-level powerhouse would not dare to step inside.

At this moment, amidst the cataclysm formed by the boundless earth, water, wind, and fire, a golden lotus was blooming. On the golden lotus, a figure sat quietly in meditation.

He wore the robes of the Astral Sage College, and the robes were embroidered with stars in gold thread, brilliant and mysterious.

That appearance was none other than the Dean who had previously met with Li Luo, Pang Qianyuan.

At this moment, his slightly closed eyes suddenly opened slowly, his gaze as deep as an abyss. He turned his head to look in the direction of the outer perimeter of the Dark Cave, a faint smile appearing at the corners of his mouth.

"This little fellow from the Luolan Mansion is quite interesting."

"His personality is completely different from Li Taixuan and Tantai Lan."

Pang Qianyuan had interacted with Li Taixuan and Tantai Lan in the past. Li Taixuan came from the Li Tianwang lineage of the Inner Divine Continent and had a profound foundation, so even though he was only at the Marquis realm himself, he still showed no trace of awe when facing Pang Qianyuan, who was of the King level.

Li Taixuan himself was also a supreme prodigy; with his talent and foundation, it was not impossible for him to step into the King level in the future, so their interactions were considered equal exchanges.

As for Tantai Lan... this woman was even more peculiar. Her background was actually quite ordinary, but her talent was so strong that even a supreme prodigy like Li Taixuan had to be overshadowed by her. It is said that back then, before she had even reached the Marquis realm, she had already stirred up quite a commotion in the Inner Divine Continent, attracting the admiration of countless prodigies there. It is no wonder that for her sake, even a proud person like Li Taixuan was willing to give up so much and come with her to this remote corner of the Eastern Divine Continent.

Whether it was Li Taixuan or Tantai Lan, their personalities were extremely sharp and exposed. Of course, perhaps it was because they were too outstanding; even if they tried to hide it, they couldn't, so they simply revealed it all without restraint.

Compared to the two of them, Li Luo seemed much more restrained. However, after the incident at the stronghold, Pang Qianyuan could see clearly that this kid knew very well how to keep a low profile.

This kind of personality was completely different from his parents, but he was definitely not someone to be bullied.

As these thoughts flowed, Pang Qianyuan turned his gaze toward the fragmented world ahead. There, a twisted crack could be seen. The crack looked like an endless abyss, and inside it, the sound of floodwaters rushing seemed to echo. With his strength, he could pierce through the illusions and see that deep within the twisted crack, a black river of unknown length and width was flowing.

In the black river, the water was thick and pitch-black, with endless evil thoughts floating and sinking within it.

Looking at that black river, even Pang Qianyuan's expression became much more solemn. That was the River of Evil Thoughts; it was rumored that all the evil thoughts in the world would converge within it.

It is said that in the very center of the Dark World, there is a Sea of Evil Thoughts, and the River of Evil Thoughts extends from it.

Even a King-level powerhouse like Pang Qianyuan was filled with wariness toward this so-called Black River of Evil Thoughts, because once one fell into it, even a Marquis-level powerhouse would be polluted by those endless evil thoughts and turned into a monster that had lost its soul.

And it was precisely the existence of this Black River of Evil Thoughts that caused the cracks in heaven and earth to appear here, giving birth to troublesome things like the Dark Cave.

As Pang Qianyuan gazed through the twisted crack at the Black River of Evil Thoughts, a pair of eyes suddenly opened within the black river, meeting Pang Qianyuan's gaze.

The moment they locked eyes, even across an extremely vast distance, the void still trembled.

The energy of heaven and earth roared, transforming into various natural disasters that swept across ten thousand miles.

"Hee hee."

A faint, ethereal laughter seemed to emanate from the black river, piercing directly through space and falling into Pang Qianyuan's ears.

Pang Qianyuan remained expressionless and withdrew his gaze. The entity in the black river had been fighting him for many years, and they were both extremely familiar with each other.

Both sides fought with techniques and had laid out many contingencies, just waiting to see who would lose a step.

Pang Qianyuan's eyes were deep. In fact, compared to the Otherkind filled with evil thoughts, he found humanity itself to be more troublesome. The intersection of good and evil thoughts made people unpredictable, and if one could not see through them, one could not respond to them.

He had not appeared in the Great Xia or the college for many years. It was not that he did not want to, but that he was completely pinned here.

Within the Great Xia, within the college...

Undercurrents were surging as well.

I wonder if the "Holy Grail of Dragon Bones" can be brought back this time. If I had this item in hand, I could be much more relaxed.

As his thoughts drifted, Pang Qianyuan finally sighed in his heart and slowly closed his eyes.

When Li Luo regained his senses, he had already withdrawn from that dark space. A look of contemplation flashed across his eyes; he had gained quite a lot from Pang Qianyuan this time.

He raised his head and saw a pair of clear, golden eyes staring at him. Noticing his awakening, those eyes shifted away.

"How was it?" Jiang Qing'e withdrew her gaze and asked nonchalantly.

"It was indeed something the Dean left for me." Li Luo smiled. He was just about to tell her the details, but he saw Jiang Qing'e wave her hand.

"The Dean was so cautious in doing things this time; there must be something special about it. You don't need to tell me for now."

Hearing this, Li Luo thought for a moment and nodded. Whether it was the Three-Tailed Heavenly Wolf or the fact that the Dean wanted some of his essence blood, it didn't seem right to say it out loud. It wasn't that he didn't trust Jiang Qing'e, but he was afraid she would worry.

She might even take control of this sealing bracelet to prevent him from taking risks.

As for asking for his essence blood, that was even more debatable. For the sake of his safety, Jiang Qing'e would likely be extremely cautious.

Regarding these matters, Li Luo had his own considerations, so there was no need to tell Jiang Qing'e too much for the time being. He would wait until he was stronger to discuss these things with her.

"By the way, do you know about the 'Battle of the Holy Grail'?" Li Luo asked suddenly.

"Battle of the Holy Grail?"

Jiang Qing'e was startled, then nodded slightly: "Of course I know. This is the most intense collision between the various colleges in the Eastern Divine Continent, and it can be called the greatest event among the colleges."

"Generally speaking, the Battle of the Holy Grail happens once every four years. Counting the time, it seems that a new session is coming at the end of this year."

"The final winner of the Holy Grail Battle can obtain the so-called 'Holy Grail of Dragon Bones'? Which college won the Holy Grail in the last session?" Li Luo asked again.

"The college that won the Holy Grail of Dragon Bones in the last session was the 'Saint Bright King College' of the Shenyang Dynasty. This college is extremely powerful and often dominates the many colleges in the Eastern Divine Continent. In the history of clashes between the Astral Sage College and them, we have often lost more than we have won," Jiang Qing'e thought for a moment and said.

"Shenyang Dynasty, Saint Bright King College..."

Li Luo frowned. He hadn't paid much attention to this information before. He didn't expect that the Astral Sage College, which he considered so powerful, would repeatedly lose to this Saint Bright King College.

Is this Saint Bright King College really that terrifying?

"In the Eastern Divine Continent, there are a total of five Saint Colleges. Besides the Saint Bright King College, the other three Saint Colleges are not to be trifled with either. Moreover, it is not just these five Saint Colleges that participate in the Holy Grail Battle; there are other large colleges that, although not qualified to be crowned with the title of 'Saint', are also not to be underestimated in terms of strength."

Li Luo felt a bit cold in his heart because this Holy Grail Battle seemed even more difficult than he had imagined. He immediately asked: "Has the Astral Sage College ever won the Holy Grail of Dragon Bones?"

Jiang Qing'e recalled for a moment and said: "There should have been times in the past, but in the last thirty years or so... the Astral Sage College doesn't seem to have successfully won the Holy Grail of Dragon Bones."

Li Luo's heart turned completely cold.

Wow, Dean, the Astral Sage College hasn't won the Holy Grail of Dragon Bones for over thirty years, so why do you think the Astral Sage College has a chance this time?

Forget it, I don't want the second part of the Heavenly Sacrifice Curse anymore; I'll just make do with the first part.