Chapter 820: Longevity: My Steady Farming Cultivation Chapter 820 — Deep Entry into Qiong Valley!

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Protagonist:

Xu Zhangqing

Xu Zhangqing suspected that the Nine-Headed Centipede had come here to participate in the Mayfly Sacrifice.

Although, he himself was also unclear what the content of this Ritual was.

But regardless, he had to investigate clearly to prevent any Surprise from occurring.

Therefore, Xu Zhangqing stared fixedly at the pitch-black Entrance, a trace of determination flashing in his eyes: "Never mind, I'll go in and take a look."

Immediately, he issued an order to Xu Qiansui.

Upon receiving the order, Xu Qiansui's entire aura converged, as if he were an ordinary plant.

He slowly shifted his body, approaching the pitch-black Entrance at the bottom of the Nine-Headed Centipede Banyan.

The current Nine-Headed Centipede Banyan, for some unknown reason, had not the slightest reaction, merely existing with a faint life fluctuation.

Sticky sap occasionally seeped from the cracks in the Bark, its whole body emitting a Decay Qi.

Normally speaking, when any living thing approached, even if the Centipede Banyan was in a dormant state, it would trigger its instinctive Defense measures, spraying venom or launching tendrils to strangle.

But Xu Qiansui was a Spirit Plant Puppet, without soul or spirit, his body refined from spirit plants, inherently carrying a similar origin aura, faintly compatible with the Nine-Headed Centipede Banyan's attributes.

When he neared the Tree Trunk, the Nine-Headed Centipede Banyan merely stirred slightly, with no intent to attack.

Xu Qiansui took the opportunity to drill inside; the Entrance was wider than anticipated, about one zhang high, the surroundings full of gray-brown root systems, hard as iron to the touch, the surface also covered with a thin layer of black fuzz.

Billowing Black Smoke surged from the depths, yet silently diverted upon touching Xu Qiansui's body.

A Spirit Plant Puppet was inherently undisturbed by Yin Evil Qi; to him it was merely ordinary mist.

The deeper he advanced, the dimmer the surrounding light became, until finally he was completely plunged into Darkness.

The insect cries and gu worm gnawing sounds of the Outside World completely disappeared, leaving only the faint sound of Xu Qiansui's soles treading on the ground, appearing exceptionally desolate.

The rotten fragrance in the air gradually dissipated, replaced by a bone-piercing chill, and wisps of Black Qi nearly condensed into threads.

This is the Decay Qi unique to Qiong Valley.

This Decay Qi is more insidious than Miasma; it does not erode the body, but directly permeates into the body, freezing the circulation of Spiritual Power and magic power.

Faint black spots appeared on the surface texture of Xu Qiansui; if it were a Spirit Tool, Magic Tool, or the like, the Spiritual Light would soon dim, nearing destruction.

Fortunately, he had no worry of life fading; he only needed to operate the Spirit Patterns on his body to resist the erosion of the Decay Qi, and could advance steadily.

After advancing for about half an Incense Stick Time, the passage suddenly opened up, and Xu Qiansui stepped into a vast valley bottom; by the looks of it, this was the rumored Qiong Valley.

Xu Zhangqing, borrowing Xu Qiansui's vision, carefully observed the surroundings.

On a non-Mayfly Day, Qiong Valley left only a Dead Silence.

There was once a River; now it had Dried Up, the Riverbed exposed, covered in fine cracks, from which trace amounts of black Decay Qi seeped.

The rock walls on both sides of the valley bottom towered into the clouds, embedded with crystals large and small, the crystals entirely dark purple, emitting an Extreme Yin faint glow.

These are Yin Marrow Moss Crystals mutated from long-term corruption by Decay Qi.

Around each Yin Marrow Moss Crystal, dense Decay Qi coiled; the crystal surface was covered with a thin layer of moss, releasing a strong inert fluctuation.

Xu Qiansui extended his palm, lightly touching a piece of Yin Marrow Moss Crystal, yet his Fingertip froze for several breaths, sufficient to see its insidious nature.

Next, he slowly advanced along the dried Riverbed, his gaze alertly scanning the surroundings.

The valley bottom was empty and boundless; besides the Riverbed and rock walls embedded with Yin Marrow Moss Crystals, only scattered bones and Damaged Magic Tools remained.

Those bones were mostly twisted and deformed, the bones covered in worm-eaten Holes and traces of Decay Qi erosion; they were clearly cultivators and monsters who had forcibly rushed into Qiong Valley in the past.

Pity, in the end they all became nourishment for the Decay Qi.

Damaged Magic Tools piled beside the bones, Spiritual Light completely lost; some Sword Bodies broken, some Magic Treasure shells covered in cracks.

They were likewise covered with a layer of black Decay Qi, having long lost their former might.

Suddenly, Xu Qiansui caught a faint fluctuation coming from behind the left rock wall.

He immediately completely converged his entire aura, like a clump of moss attached to the rock wall, and slowly moved over.

Circling past the rock wall, he saw three monsters half a person's height tall crouching beside a pile of bones, frantically tearing at the remaining parts.

These monsters were covered entirely in thick green moss, their bodies condensed from scattered bones and Decay Qi, four limbs thick, fingertips bearing sharp Bone Spurs.

They are variant monsters born from Decay Qi, Moss Puppets.

Moss Puppets have no eyes or mouth, relying solely on sensing surrounding fluctuations to identify prey; their physical Defense is Extremely Strong, ordinary spells striking their bodies only stir up a scatter of moss fragments, difficult to cause Substantial injury.

Their movements tearing at bones were extremely rough; every bite emitted a "Click" crisp sound, bone fragments mixed with moss scattering across the ground, emitting a rotten aura.

Xu Qiansui, using the rock wall's cover and Disguise, slowly circled past the Moss Puppets' activity range.

Although Moss Puppets lack intelligence, if their numbers are many, rather than fighting here and wasting a Large Amount of time, it is better to directly avoid them and continue deeper inside.

Regardless, he had to obey Master's command.

Fortunately, these three Moss Puppets were focused on gnawing bones and had no awareness whatsoever.

The deeper Xu Qiansui walked into the valley bottom, the denser the Decay Qi became, even beginning to affect perception.

His perception range shrank from the original Hundred Zhang to Thirty Zhang, the surrounding fluctuations also becoming increasingly chaotic.

Suddenly, a faint, barely audible low murmur transmitted into his ears.

That was not insect cries, nor monster roars, but countless overlapping human voices, some wailing, some roaring, some pleading, their Tone filled with Despair and pain.

Xu Qiansui immediately halted his steps, his gaze looking toward the source of the sound.

Only to see, not far ahead in the center of the Riverbed, standing ten-odd blurry figures; these figures were semi-transparent throughout, black Decay Qi coiling around them.

They looked like a group of lonely wild ghosts.

In truth, they are all Echo Souls of those who participated in the Mayfly Sacrifice in the past, failed, and were eroded by Decay Qi.

They were not physical entities, yet could emit the sounds they made when alive, and possessed extremely strong resistance to spells; ordinary attacks could not harm them at all—only spells or spirit talismans imbued with yang qi could inflict damage.

The Echoing Souls drifted aimlessly across the riverbed, muttering repeatedly in their mouths:

"Life candle… extinguished…"

"Mayfly Divine Fire… it hurts so much…"

"I want vitality…"

Their voices carried strong negative emotions; even Xu Qiansui, without soul or spirit, could perceive the despair and agony within them.

Had it been an ordinary cultivator, his mind and spirit would likely have been eroded by these negative emotions, plunging him into madness.

Xu Qiansui avoided the Echoing Souls' drifting range and proceeded toward the deepest part of Qiong Valley.

Everything here was so novel to Xu Zhangqing.

Upon reaching the end, Xu Qiansui's perception suddenly caught a trace of fluctuation.

The source was neither decay qi nor a monster.

This trace of fluctuation was almost concealed by decay qi; had his perception not been sharp, he would not have noticed it at all.

Xu Qiansui slowed his movements and carefully investigated the source.

Not long after, he locked onto a fissure.

The fissure was about half a chi wide and bottomless; the surrounding rocks were covered with dense worm-bored holes, their edges faintly red, similar to the color of the sap exuded by the Nine-Headed Centipede Banyan, yet with an added touch of yin evil!