Chapter 259: Acquaintances

This was the first time Xu Chen had voluntarily entered this kind of eerie forest.

Previously, he and Youtong had been fleeing east and west, occasionally attempting to enter dense forests to hide, but in reality, not only could they not shake off the three-headed demon dog, it would even plunge the two of them into greater crisis; therefore, after a few brief experiments, the two had never entered a dense forest again.

The dense forest before him now was even deeper and darker than the ones encountered previously; the massive plants blocked out the sky and sun, reaching heights of a hundred to a thousand zhang, so before Xu Chen even landed, he felt a hair-raising sense of horror.

Because after coming down, he was shocked to find he could not distinguish directions.

From all directions, the air was filled with intense, murderous, and hostile auras.

It was as if every large tree, every vine, every blade of wild grass, and even every stone and every inch of soil were like dormant living creatures, waiting for an opportunity to strangle and devour any living thing that entered.

A cold and terrifying sense of ancient wilderness permeated the dense forest, as if an Ancient Fierce Beast waiting to devour people was roaring wildly within his Sea of Consciousness, causing one's Soul to become disoriented.

This was a world completely different from Minghuang.

There was absolutely no similarity at all.

After Xu Chen entered the dense forest and observed his surroundings briefly, he sensed the Spirit Qi fluctuations coming from the roars of wild beasts and a battle; he unleashed his Cloud Flow Step, turned into a blur, and quickly disappeared.

Dense hostility surged in from all directions; Xu Chen was vigilant at all times but remained unconcerned.

Although this hostility in the dense forest was filled with murderous intent, it varied in strength and was basically unable to cause him harm.

He now needed to catch up to that human he had just seen.

This might be an extremely important clue for him to leave the wilderness.

This place was at least one hundred thousand li away from the Minghuang where the Wind Clan resided.

If placed in the Mortal World, that would be a range spanning over a dozen human kingdoms.

But according to Youtong, this distance was still not even one percent of Minghuang; the boundary area between Minghuang and the Mortal World was measured in hundreds of millions of li, and even a great demon at the level of an ordinary Demon Venerable might not necessarily know how large Minghuang truly was.

Therefore, trying to find an exit within such a vast range was simply harder than finding a needle in a haystack.

The only good news for now was that Youtong had successfully brought him to the Minghuang Boundary, and he already had the general range of the passage.

According to the rumors left behind by the Wind Clan, when the human ancestors evacuated Minghuang, they destroyed all the teleportation passages with the goal of blocking Nether Beasts from entering the Mortal World.

And such a massive gap before him could only be achieved by a super powerhouse.

Therefore, this place might very well be one of the passages that was destroyed back then.

Xu Chen chased continuously along the large number of collapsed and destroyed plants, getting closer and closer to the battle fluctuations ahead.

Moreover, Xu Chen discerned carefully that there was not just one human, but several.

At this moment, they were being chased and attacked by a large number of wild beasts, and the situation seemed very dire.

Whether they were Demon Beasts or Nether Beasts, none of the creatures in the dark forest were easy to deal with.

The distance was still somewhat far, and Xu Chen could not judge exactly how many beasts there were or how strong they were, but since the humans were able to resist these beasts, their strength was at least decent, which gave him a few more points of excitement and confidence.

In the dark dense forest ahead, five humans wearing animal skins or hemp clothes were currently fighting for their lives against seven or eight giant beasts.

The giant beasts varied in strength and had bizarre shapes; the large ones were over twenty zhang, and the small ones were seven or eight zhang. Each one exuded an incomparably fierce aura, with surging demon energy and black light spewing from their mouths. The strongest one among them was at least Fifth Rank, and every attack caused a terrifying halo to ripple outward, destroying all trees and plants within its reach and turning them into dust.

The five people were of various ages, both male and female, and their auras were cold and eerie. Although their appearances seemed normal, their faces were actually pale and gaunt, faintly carrying a Black Mist, much like the Ghost Cultivation who, according to legend, never saw the sun for years.

The strongest among them was a thin, tall, withered old man with sallow hair and beard, who was even wearing a Daoist bun. He was holding a Magic Treasure and single-handedly fighting three of the largest giant beasts. His body was rolling with Black Mist, continuously releasing a powerful cold aura, but the Magic Spell he released was a pure human-world cultivator technique, and it was filled with flashes of lightning, creating a strange and discordant feeling.

The other three men and one woman were each fighting a smaller giant beast, but the weapons they used were a mess, including clubs and animal bones. Although they also emitted an aura similar to a Magic Treasure, they were clearly crudely made; while they looked more like normal Magic Treasures than the Wind Clan's style, the craftsmanship was simply unbearable to look at.

The five people were scattered within a radius of several li, fighting while retreating, using whistles to convey information to each other.

But in reality, the battle had already entered a stalemate, and the five were completely entangled by the few giant beasts and unable to break free.

"Ah~"

Accompanied by a scream, the weakest young man among them was swept away by a giant beast, crashing through several large trees along the way, screaming as he tumbled and fell into the depths of the dense forest.

The old man was still at least three hundred zhang away at the time. In his desperation, he roared, his body's Spirit Qi exploding outward, turning into countless sharp cyan-black blades that swept in all directions, forcing back the three giant beasts besieging him. He then flickered, preparing to rush over to save the person, but he did not anticipate another woman's scream coming from not far away.

"Master, save me!"

The old man suddenly turned his body and rushed toward the woman's direction, while simultaneously waving his hand, his Magic Treasure turning into a beam of cyan light that smashed toward the giant beast pouncing on the young man.

It seemed that the two companions being injured in succession caused a panic, and the remaining two middle-aged men also began to falter; one of them directly abandoned the giant beast and fled into the forest.

"Wang Daolin, how dare you~" the old man roared loudly.

But the man threw something behind him. With a loud boom, a ball of blinding red light exploded. While the giant beast was blocked, the man had already disappeared.

This was like the last straw that broke the camel's back; the scene, which had been evenly matched, collapsed instantly, and the four humans fell into a precarious situation.

The eight giant beasts roared ferociously and pounced on the four people.

"Boom~"

Just at this moment, a cyan lightning bolt over a zhang thick suddenly descended from the sky, smashing into the giant beast that had already pounced in front of a middle-aged man wearing animal skins.

The giant beast's massive body sank downward, emitting a shrill scream. Half of its neck was shattered by the lightning, and cyan-black blood sprayed out like a waterfall, instantly being ground into fly ash by the churning lightning.

The sudden, massive commotion immediately caused the few Demon Beasts and the four humans to freeze in shock.

A cyan figure flashed out from the dense forest and appeared in front of another giant beast, turning into a blur. Holding a Magic Treasure flashing with cyan lightning, he unleashed a barrage of attacks. At the same time, an ancient Copper Mirror flashed above his head, instantly transforming into twelve Copper Mirror light projections. Amidst the spewing cyan light, twelve clones appeared, each unleashing Magic Spells and launching a tidal wave of attacks against the few giant beasts.

"Qinglan Shadow Technique?" the old man exclaimed in a daze, his face full of shock.

Xu Chen was stunned for a moment, then felt a surge of joy. He used Divine Sense Transmission and roared: "Everyone, retreat quickly! I cannot hold them for long!"

"Many thanks!" The old man came to his senses, waved his hand, and a cyan gale swept across a thousand zhang, scooping up the two men and one woman before flashing away.

Xu Chen utilized his Cloud Flow Step, flashing back and forth between the few giant beasts, using his Thunder Fire Pestle to hammer them one by one to attract their aggro. Once the auras of the four people had gradually faded to at least ten li away, two Shell phantoms appeared behind him. With a fierce flap, he disappeared from the encirclement of the giant beasts.

Following Xu Chen's disappearance, the remaining clones of the Qinglan Light-Splitting Mirror persisted for a moment before quickly dissipating and vanishing.

The few giant beasts were momentarily plunged into confusion, roaring and crashing back and forth amidst the fallen giant trees and forest wood, searching for the enemy's aura.

However, by this time, Xu Chen was already several li away, and his Divine Sense had caught up to the figures of the old man and the other three. He then flapped the Shells a few more times, his figure flashing like lightning as he followed after them.

Behind him, the roars and crashing sounds of the giant beasts rose and fell, but they had clearly lost their direction.

Although the old man had taken his companions and fled first, he seemed to have slowed his pace to wait for Xu Chen.

Sensing a Divine Sense aura following from behind, he stopped at a sparse rocky clearing twenty li away. Soon, Xu Chen's figure flashed and appeared before the four of them.

However, before Xu Chen could speak, the old man said with an excited face: "This place is still not safe. Little friend, please follow us and leave this area before we talk!"

"Good!" Although Xu Chen had a thousand words he wanted to ask right now, he also knew this was no place to linger, so he followed the four elders, unfolded his figure once more, rushed out of the Dark Forest, and sped like lightning toward the depths of the gap.

After a full half-hour, the group arrived near a small lake.

The surroundings were encircled by giant rocks, with steep mountain peaks standing everywhere; in the extreme distance, it was a hazy, chaotic expanse, and it was impossible to see what state it was actually in.

The group stopped together, and only then did the old man ask with an excited face and somewhat incoherent speech: "Little friend, where exactly do you come from? How could you appear alone at the Minghuang Boundary, and why do you know how to use the Qinglan Shadow Technique of Yuqing Hall?"

As soon as Xu Chen heard the three words "Yuqing Hall," he felt as if he had found his parents, instantly overcome with an emotion that brought tears to his eyes, and he hurriedly performed the standard Daoist obeisance:

"This junior is Xu Chen of the Taiyuan Sect. I fell into the Minghuang Di Jie from the Mortal World not long ago and am currently looking for a way back. Since the senior knows of Yuqing Hall and the Qinglan Shadow Technique, it seems you also came from the Mortal World. Might I ask if you can tell me where the road back to the Mortal World is?"

"Taiyuan Sect?"

Upon hearing this, the old man and the other three could not help but exclaim in unison. The youngest man among them excitedly grabbed Xu Chen's arm and asked urgently: "You, are you truly a Disciple of the Taiyuan Sect, and did you come from the Mortal World not long ago?"

Xu Chen was stunned and hurriedly nodded: "It is genuine and authentic. I am indeed a Disciple of the Taiyuan Sect in the Song Kingdom. I fell in through the Nether Rift just a few months ago. Daoist Friend, do you also know of the Taiyuan Sect?"

The young man's eyes instantly filled with tears as he choked out: "I am also a Disciple of the Taiyuan Sect. I fell in from the Mortal World eight years ago..."

However, having said this much, he looked Xu Chen up and down and asked with some confusion: "You, if you are a Disciple of the Taiyuan Sect, why have I never seen you before?"

(End of this chapter)