Chapter 285: Self-Detonation

"Boom~"

A violent explosion erupted deep within the fog-shrouded stone forest, followed by roars, howls, and earth-shaking combat. In an instant, a man and a woman were locked in battle with a humanoid monster over a zhang tall.

Two Flying Swords flickered with spiritual light, darting up and down as they unleashed sharp sword Qi that continuously slashed at the monster.

Yet the monster was incredibly agile, darting back and forth through the fog like a phantom. Occasionally, it would wave its sharp, long claws to block or grab the Flying Swords directly. Amidst the violent collisions, the two Flying Swords were unable to break through the monster's defenses.

Under the monster's elusive attacks and counterattacks, the man and woman soon fell into a disadvantage. However, they fought to the death without retreating, side by side, their faces resolute as they struck back. Before long, to save the woman, the man took a claw from the monster. His already tattered clothes were completely torn apart, and several wounds deep enough to see bone appeared on his back. Fresh blood gushed out like a stream, soaking half of his body.

Stimulated by the thick, bloody scent, the monster's attacks became even more fierce and brutal, circling the pair while emitting roars that pierced the Soul.

The faces of the two grew increasingly pale, and their bodies even began to tremble uncontrollably; they could barely maintain control of their Flying Swords.

"Since I can't kill you, then we'll die together!"

A roar of fury erupted from the man's mouth. From his body, already drained of vital energy, a terrifying wave of aura suddenly exploded.

"Eldest Senior Brother, no!" the woman cried out in alarm, tears streaming down her face.

"Junior Sister, run!"

The man let out a loud shout, raised his hand, and released an irresistible force, pushing the woman several dozen zhang away.

"Boom~"

A blinding light exploded in the fog, and the area within a hundred zhang was instantly reduced to dust.

Under the shock of the violent explosion, a large number of stone pillars began to collapse with a series of thuds. Debris and soil swept outward like a tidal wave. The power of this explosion could be felt within a range of several dozen li.

Blasted by the shockwave of the explosion, the woman tumbled through the air for several hundred zhang before crashing heavily into a stone pillar and rolling to the ground.

"Eldest Senior Brother~"

The woman wailed, disregarding the danger as she turned and lunged back into the center of the explosion.

The fog in the area of several hundred zhang dissipated, leaving behind a large crater several zhang in diameter.

The man lay in the chaotic mud and stone, his flesh and blood a mangled mess.

A humanoid monster, over a zhang tall and entirely snow-white, lay twisted in the crater with a broken Flying Sword stuck in its body, though it was still breathing and hissing.

Seeing the woman, the monster struggled to stand up and staggered toward her again.

……

Several li away, at the bottom of a valley covered by trees, stood an Altar that had been abandoned for who knows how long.

The Altar covered an area of over a hundred zhang and was so covered in mud, floating soil, thorns, and weeds that its original appearance was barely recognizable.

Suddenly, a thin, tall figure appeared out of thin air on the Altar.

A moment later, five more figures appeared in succession.

After the group appeared, they couldn't help but frown as they looked at the white mist and complex terrain before them.

"Could it be that we've returned to Minghuang?" a man asked, his face full of terror.

The thin, tall elder shook his head and said, "Judging by the environment, it shouldn't be, though this white mist is very similar. This place is somewhat strange; everyone, be careful and do not be careless!"

"Boom~"

Just as they were speaking, a sudden, violent explosion rang out.

The group was stunned for a moment.

True Monarch Guiling and Xu Chen both possessed incredibly powerful Divine Sense. Although they could only see within a range of ten-plus li under the suppression of the white mist, this explosion, occurring only a few li away, allowed both of them to instantly capture a familiar fluctuation of vital energy.

Almost simultaneously, their Divine Sense landed on the place where the explosion had originated.

"Seventh Senior Sister?"

When a blurred scene and a slightly familiar aura appeared in Xu Chen's Divine Sense, he exclaimed in surprise. The Shell Light appeared behind him and flapped gently, and he vanished without a trace.

At the same time, a Divine Sense Transmission reached the ears of True Monarch Guiling: "Senior, please bring the others quickly. I have fellow disciples who have met with misfortune; I am going ahead."

True Monarch Guiling rolled up his Spirit Qi and, taking Chen Yang and the other three, stepped into the vast white mist.

"Eldest Senior Brother!"

Beside the large crater, the woman held the man, who no longer had any breath, and wept bitterly. By this time, the monster had also opened its sharp, giant claws and lunged toward the woman.

"Seventh Senior Sister, look out~"

Accompanied by a cry of alarm, a cyan Wind Blade, a zhang in size, tore through the air and slashed fiercely at the monster.

Although this was only an ordinary Wind Blade Magic Spell, its power was immense.

The cyan light swept across the monster and continued on to carve a massive fissure into a mountain peak behind it.

The monster's body suddenly stalled, then exploded with a bang from its brow to its legs, splitting into two halves. As the pieces flew off, they burst into clouds of blood mist in the sky, leaving not even a bone behind before they could hit the ground.

In her sorrow and confusion, the woman was startled back to her senses by the shout and the sudden turn of events. Amidst the churning blood mist, she saw a figure she knew incredibly well flash and appear before her.

"Junior Brother?!" Qu Mei wiped her tears, dazed and unable to believe her eyes.

Xu Chen did not have time to greet her; instead, he knelt down and pressed a finger to the Eldest Senior Brother's forehead. His brow furrowed instantly, but he quickly sat cross-legged and began to circulate the Great Void Refining Demon Art.

"Junior Brother, Eldest Senior Brother is dead!" Qu Mei felt as if she were dreaming, but she preferred to believe that the Junior Brother before her was truly there, so she knelt on the ground and wailed.

Xu Chen had no time to be distracted. He circulated his cultivation technique with all his might. Accompanied by a faint, blue, nebula-like light mist spraying from his Apertures, a faint white mist was channeled into the Eldest Senior Brother's body.

The Eldest Senior Brother had detonated his dantian, and his heart had already stopped beating, but a faint wisp of white light remained of his Soul. If he could first keep the light of the Soul from extinguishing, he could still save a life by relying on the robust physique of a cultivator.

However, Xu Chen's current Great Void Refining Demon Art was no longer as fierce as it once was, and the white Qi refined was very weak.

This might be due to the mutation caused by the fusion of the Blue Light Treasure Bottle and the Heaven-Suppressing Divine Stele, or it might be because he had lost the massive energy source that was the Demon Lord Youtong.

But regardless, the Great Void Refining Demon Art could still be circulated, and although the white Qi refined was minimal, it was enough to temporarily stabilize the Eldest Senior Brother's Soul.

Just as Xu Chen sat down to circulate his energy and save the Eldest Senior Brother, a ray of spiritual light wrapped around several figures and appeared out of thin air behind Qu Mei.

Under the pressure of the terrifying aura, Qu Mei turned her head, her eyes teary and filled with terror.

"Qushimei?!" Chen Yang, standing beside True Monarch Guiling, could hardly believe his eyes.

Although they hadn't met for eight years, he knew her aura very well, and her appearance had not changed much.

"You... are you Fourth Senior Brother?!" Qu Mei was even more confused. Looking at this person who wore animal skins but whose appearance and aura were exactly those of the person she had missed and searched for for eight whole years, she was instantly left completely dazed on the spot.

"Qushimei, it really is you, that's wonderful, are you alright!"

Chen Yang was a man after all, and with a higher cultivation base and a steadier mind, after a moment of surprise, he was overcome with extreme joy, stepping forward to grab Qu Mei's hand and shake it vigorously.

"Fourth Senior Brother, is it really you? Am I not dreaming?" Qu Mei still had not fully come to her senses.

Chen Yang hurriedly said, "Junior Sister, you are not dreaming, I am Fourth Senior Brother Chen Yang, I came back together with our Junior Brother, right, this is... Eldest Senior Brother, how did you all end up here, what happened?"

Upon hearing this, tears rolled down Qu Mei's face again, and she wailed, "Eldest Senior Brother died to save me!"

Chen Yang's expression changed drastically and he prepared to step forward, but True Monarch Guiling stopped him, saying, "Your Eldest Senior Brother only self-detonated his dantian; although his Dao foundation is damaged, his Soul still remains, he is not dead. Daoist Friend Xu is currently treating him, do not disturb him."

Everyone was astonished to hear this, and Qu Mei and Chen Yang both stepped back a few paces, then all held their breath to watch Xu Chen save him.

True Monarch Guiling looked at the blue mist swirling around Xu Chen's body, a trace of inexplicable awe appearing in his eyes.

He was not familiar with the cultivation techniques of the Taiyuan Sect; after all, when he fell into Minghuang, the Taiyuan Sect was already a ruin, and few cultivators even went there, let alone having a sect.

But the longer he spent with Xu Chen, the more strange abilities Xu Chen displayed.

Therefore, he dared less and less to regard Xu Chen as an ordinary junior cultivator.

He could not even see through Xu Chen's realm and cultivation base at all, which was the most incredible thing to him.

Of course, what was even more incredible was the phantom of the giant stele that reached the sky and covered the earth that appeared on Xu Chen's body during the Heavenly Tribulation, which gave him a sense of fear that made him dare not touch it with his Divine Sense.

Associating this with the mystery of the disappearance of the Taiyuan Sect thousands of years ago, True Monarch Guiling always felt a heart-pounding trepidation.

Although the reason for the disappearance of the Taiyuan Sect had always been a mystery in the Immortal World, in reality, for those super Immortal Sects with formidable strength like them, there were still some internal rumors passed down.

It is said that the Taiyuan Sect suffered Heavenly condemnation because it touched upon a very terrifying taboo.

As for what the taboo actually was, no one knew.

Therefore, while the many Immortal Sects and great cultivators of the Immortal World were digging into this mystery with their own hidden agendas, they all also felt a vague fear.

But in order to cultivate and become an immortal, touching some taboos was unavoidable.

After all, the greater the danger, the greater the harvest; this was the consensus of the Immortal World.

Which powerhouse did not experience hardships and twists and turns before finally standing proudly between heaven and earth?

Therefore, True Monarch Guiling was also full of curiosity about the secrets on Xu Chen.

However, this curiosity was not coveting the various treasures and secrets on Xu Chen, but a kind of centripetal force that gave him a feeling of wanting to follow him.

Xu Chen gave him two stalks of Blood God Grass and one Tribulation Crystal, and helped him survive this unprecedented Heavenly Tribulation, almost single-handedly pushing him to the point of Void Breaking and becoming an immortal; this kind of terrifying ability could no longer be described by any language.

(End of this chapter)