Chapter 196: The Price of Turning Hostile

Inside the stone hall, a large crowd swarmed forward to surround the old man, all of them desperately inhaling the cold mist around the flower.

As they inhaled this cold mist, the red patterns on their faces all faded significantly, and even the obscure, cold Soul aura that Xu Chen had constantly sensed from them seemed much more normal, giving the feeling of being close to a normal cultivator rather than the cold, violent aura of a Soul Beast.

Xu Chen knew that this flower was full of cold energy; the first time he picked it, it had nearly frozen his Soul, meridians, and dantian.

He also knew this thing was miraculous, but he didn't know what it was used for; he hadn't expected it to be an incomparable treasure to these Minghuang natives.

The group of people were all huddled together, inhaling the cold energy of the Wangchuan Flower like addicts, each of them looking refreshed and incredibly excited.

Even Feng Feiyi squeezed in to take a few breaths, then returned to Xu Chen's side, still wanting more, and whispered via sound transmission: "How do you have a Wangchuan Flower, and where did you pick it?"

Xu Chen replied with a strange expression: "Not far, probably three days away from where I met you?"

Feng Feiyi was stunned for a moment and asked: "How far is three days away?"

"Uh..." Xu Chen was a bit stumped; three days was roughly the amount of time he could last after eating one Bigu Pill, but in this pitch-black world devoid of light, there were no sun, moon, or stars, and naturally no distinction between day and night, so he couldn't calculate time accurately. However, he calculated silently in his heart for a moment and replied via sound transmission:

"Three days is a term from the Mortal World; it's roughly the distance of ten round trips from the cave where I saved you."

"That far?" Feng Feiyi exclaimed.

"Yes, if anything, it's further, not closer. I walked for at least ten days after falling into the Underworld before I met you, and there was also one time when that giant clam shell carried me down from the Underworld River, so the distance is even harder to judge," Xu Chen nodded and replied via sound transmission.

"No wonder you were able to pick a Wangchuan Flower. We never go further than about the half-day distance you mentioned when we go out; any further and it's full of danger. If it weren't for going to the giant beast's nest to steal Ghost Soul Water, we wouldn't have met you this time. In this operation, we still have two companions who haven't returned; they were probably killed by the giant beast!" Feng Feiyi said, her mood somewhat low.

"What is Ghost Soul Water?" This time it was Xu Chen's turn to be confused.

"Ghost Soul Water is that stuff you gave me to drink; it's only found near that giant beast's nest. In order to survive here and possess the power to resist Nether Beasts, and not be polluted by the Nether Qi to the point of losing our sanity and turning completely into existences like Nether Beasts, we need to frequently consume something called Divine Blood Paste. However, although Divine Blood Paste can enhance our strength and maintain our intelligence to resist the pollution of Nether Qi, taking it year-round causes a large amount of Blood Poison to accumulate in our bodies. Look at these patterns on our faces and bodies; that is the phenomenon of Divine Blood Paste toxins overflowing. The more you eat, the stronger your strength, but the more severe the Blood Poison flare-ups become. If we cannot suppress it, we will eventually die from the poison bursting our bodies. Ghost Soul Water is the most effective thing for suppressing Blood Poison. We often have to go to the giant beast's nest to steal some, but we were unlucky this time; a giant beast happened to advance in rank, and we almost all died there. I am lucky I met you..."

Xu Chen felt both unable to laugh or cry while his face twitched incessantly.

Lucky you met me, but you also used me as a shield.

If the Clam Shell Boat hadn't been sturdy enough, and the Blue Light Treasure Bottle hadn't protected his Soul, he would probably be dead beyond dead right now.

Seeing Xu Chen's expression, Feng Feiyi lowered her head to look at the top of Xu Chen's head and apologized softly: "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, but you appeared too strangely and suddenly; I could only do that."

Xu Chen waved his hand helplessly and said: "Forget it, the matter is in the past. Seeing that the effect of this flower seems better than Ghost Soul Water, I only hope that the Elder and the Clan Leader can keep their promise and let me go to the Ancestral Temple."

Feng Feiyi hurriedly said: "Don't worry, the Clan Leader and the Elder will definitely agree. With this Wangchuan Flower, if we plant it properly, we won't have to risk going to the giant beast's nest to get Ghost Soul Water for a long time, and all the children of the tribe will be saved. Besides, I must especially thank you for giving us this Wangchuan Flower; my brother has heavy Blood Poison and is about to die, and just a little bit of the Wangchuan Flower's juice will be enough to save him."

Although Xu Chen admired the righteous act of these human descendants guarding the Minghuang, in reality, the recent actions of these people threatening and robbing his Clam Shell Boat made him very angry.

So-called good and evil are merely a matter of a single thought.

In fact, after millions of years, these people have already adapted to life in the Minghuang, and every move they make is merely for their own survival; as for the great righteousness of guarding the Minghuang, it is not certain how much of it remains.

Moreover, now that the passage between the Underworld and the Mortal World has been severed, this kind of guarding has even less meaning.

Therefore, if they really were to turn hostile and fight, Xu Chen would absolutely not hold back.

Just like in the Mortal World, Immortal World cultivators gather to suppress Black Wind and fight Soul Beasts to maintain peace and righteousness, but when they fight each other, they also turn hostile and ignore all ties. Bullying the small with the big and the weak with the strong is even more commonplace, and killing to seize treasures is not exactly a daily occurrence, but it is heard of from time to time.

But no matter how these human descendants treat him, it is also for the sake of their own survival. A practitioner of the Dao sees such natural struggles more clearly, so he is quite understanding.

Just like when Yuqing Hall arranges for Disciples to descend the mountain in large numbers to fight Soul Beasts, no matter what their purpose is, or what ulterior secrets they may be hiding, the process is at least defensible in terms of morality.

Therefore, Xu Chen also feels great admiration and respect.

Although he did not personally go to the border of the Song Kingdom and the surrounding countries to help kill and fight the Soul Beasts, he is also very clear that many of the Disciples from Yuqing Hall who descended the mountain this time will never be able to return and will die in this unprecedented Soul Beast disaster.

Therefore, Xu Chen still retains a pure sense of respect and admiration for these Minghuang human descendants and will not hold a grudge just because they almost turned hostile just now.

Besides, the situation he is facing right now does not allow him to turn hostile.

Because the price of turning hostile is too great; he really cannot guarantee that he can escape alive.

Facing over a hundred opponents in the Zhenyuan Realm and Danyuan Realm, who are also immensely strong and possess strange combat techniques, is not as simple as showing off; it is no different from seeking death.

Right now, he is far from being forced to that point.

Just now, he revealed two Third-tier Magic Treasures both out of necessity and to intimidate them; from beginning to end, he never really wanted to start a fight.

Fortunately, his threat was successful.

Now that the crisis is resolved, Xu Chen also feels much more relaxed inside. He turns his head to look up at Feng Feiyi, his gaze sweeping over that pair of magnificent, towering breasts wrapped in tight leather clothing, and his face twitches as he transmits via sound: "What exactly is this Divine Blood Paste you mentioned? Can you take me to see it?"

Feng Feiyi lowers her head and sees Xu Chen's gaze landing on her chest; her cheeks actually turn slightly red, and she nods: "I will ask the Elder. If he agrees, I can take you to see the God Blood Pool."

After speaking, Feng Feiyi walks to the two elders and says a few words. One of the elders' expressions changes slightly, and he seems prepared to shake his head, but the other elder says a few words in a low voice. After the two discuss it in low voices for a moment, one of the elders releases a powerful Soul aura that suppresses the entire scene, and the noisy, clamorous sound in the entire hall stops instantly.

The elder holds up the Wangchuan Flower in his hand and speaks loudly for a while. A burst of cheers erupts in the hall instantly, and then two women who appear to be older walk out and take the Wangchuan Flower away.

Only then does the elder who spoke transmit to Xu Chen: "Your Wangchuan Flower is very important to us, so we allow you to go to the Ancestral Temple once. We generally do not allow outsiders to view the God Blood Pool, but since you are from the Mortal World, Divine Blood Paste should be useless to you. Since you want to see it, let Feiyi take you to see it. Now, do you want to go to the Ancestral Temple first, or go see the God Blood Pool first?"

Xu Chen thinks for a moment and says: "I'd better go to the Ancestral Temple first; after all, it is more important!"

The elder nods, his expression serious as he transmits: "Then follow me!"

Thus, Xu Chen follows the elder deeper into the cave. The crowd disperses one after another, and until Xu Chen walks out of the hall, many people swarm forward to surround Feng Feiyi, chattering and clamoring excitedly.

Clearly, this strange human with a small stature who seems as if he could be blown over by the wind, whom Feng Feiyi brought back, hides too many secrets, and one Wangchuan Flower has almost completely conquered everyone.

Xu Chen follows behind the elder, walking continuously into the mountain along a manually excavated passage, with several burly men holding Giant Forks following behind him, seemingly for protection, but also like surveillance.

However, Xu Chen does not care at all.

As long as they let him enter the Ancestral Temple, it will be enough. If he cannot find it here, he will go to other tribes to search; he imagines that the Wangchuan Flower also holds a powerful attraction for other tribes, and even those blue Space Crystals can certainly be traded.

The passage is very long, winding and seemingly tilting all the way toward the top of the mountain.

After walking for about half a quarter of an hour and passing through a thick stone door, the view suddenly opens up.

What appears in Xu Chen's eyes is actually a huge natural cave, also without any Black Mist.

All around the cave, there are crystals emitting a faint white light, and Xu Chen can even vaguely feel that the arrangement of these crystals has the aura of an Array.

On the stone wall directly opposite, a building resembling a temple has been manually excavated. Although the structure is extremely crude, it looks tall and majestic, estimated to be over ten zhang high from the ground to the cave ceiling. Outside the temple, there is also a row of huge pillars several feet thick, which look very shocking and also carry a very ancient aura.

(End of chapter)