Chapter 123: Blackwater Marsh

Ling Xiao's heaven-shaking sword temporarily split the spirit-devouring crow flock, but the flying vessel's protective array was on the verge of collapse under the crazed impact of the flock. The sword's residual slash cut into the thick black mist, not only failing to disperse it, but seemingly provoking some lurking beast.

The black mist surged violently, suddenly forming a giant hand that blotted out the sky, wrapped in suffocating filth and deathly stillness, and slammed fiercely toward the flying vessel.

"Hold steady!" Ling Xiao shouted low, his immortal power surging as he tried to bluntly resist the blow.

However, the black mist's giant hand was not pure energy impact; it contained extremely bizarre spatial distortion power. The vessel's shield shattered like fragile glass, the hull groaning under the strain. Everyone felt the world spin, surroundings shifting rapidly as space was violently torn and folded.

"Hang on!" Wei Yuzhu exclaimed, sword light coiling around her as she tried to steady her stance.

Luo Changfeng gripped the gunwale with both hands, while Shi Ran was shielded in Ling Xiao's embrace at once, his vast immortal power forming a final barrier.

Yet all this proved futile before the absolute spatial might. With a deafening boom and total weightlessness, the flying vessel shattered completely; the people, like broken kites, were caught in violent energy torrents and plunged into the endless darkness below.

Plunk! Plunk!

Icy, viscous mud reeking of decay instantly swallowed the four of them.

"Cough cough!" Shi Ran was the first to struggle out of the foul marsh, her gold‑black heterochromatic eyes anxiously scanning the dim surroundings. Mud clung to her cheeks and hair, while the immortal‑demon power within her automatically circulated, cleansing impurity and dispelling the invading chill miasma.

Immediately after, Ling Xiao's silhouette appeared silently beside her, his white robes still spotless, only his brow furrowed as his divine sense spread like a tide. "Are you all right?" he looked at Shi Ran, his voice hinting at a barely perceptible tension.

"I'm fine…" "All good…" Wei Yuzhu and Luo Changfeng surfaced one after another from the mire, looking disheveled but with steady breath.

"Damn… what place is this?" Luo Changfeng wiped mud from his face and looked around. Here the light was extremely dim, the air reeking of a nauseating decay odor.

Towering ancient trees twisted and knotted, ghost‑like vines hanging from their branches, the marsh's dark green mud bubbling with fine bubbles; occasionally eerie shapes darted beneath the murky water, producing rustling sounds.

What was even more unsettling was the utterly chaotic sense of space here, divine sense hampered greatly, as if trapped in a constantly writhing belly.

"It's the depths of Blackwater Marsh, but the space has been completely twisted, bearing no resemblance to the direction we previously sensed." Ling Xiao said solemnly, looking up at only impenetrable toxic mist and warped vegetation. "That altar…has vanished. Or rather, we have been forcibly shifted into another spatial fold."

Shi Ran struggled to calm her heart, trying again to sense Xiao Muyu's aura, but the faint link seemed entirely blocked by the marsh's impurity and chaotic space, leaving only a vague sense of pain and anxiety. "I can't sense…my third senior brother's breath comes and goes, completely interfered with."

Wei Yuzhu cleansed herself with a purification spell, her face grave: "The enemy planned this well—the spirit‑devouring crow swarm and the black mist attack were mere feints; their true aim was to exile us to this death‑land to buy time."

"We must find the altar at once!" Luo Changfeng wiped his compass artifact, but the needle spun wildly, unable to lock on—"the magnetic field and space here are in chaos."

Wei Yuzhu grabbed her hair in frustration: "This damned place blocks divine sense, the compass fails—how are we to find anything? They can't wait!"

Just as everyone was at a loss, Shi Ran's heart stirred: Blackwater Marsh belongs to the demon realm of Demon King Yun Tingcang, and Yun Tingcang's younger brother—Yun Tingliao—still lingers in her sea of consciousness.

She had actually forgotten all about this, only now recalling it.

"Master, perhaps there is still a way." Shi Ran looked at Ling Xiao, regret flashing in her eyes: "Yun Tingliao, I forgot him."

Without waiting for Ling Xiao's reply, she closed her eyes, sank her consciousness into her sea of consciousness, and found Yun Tingliao staring blankly at the starry sky within it.

"Yun Tingliao." Shi Ran called with her divine sense.

Yun Tingliao seemed unwilling to turn, remaining still for a while, until Shi Ran was about to give up forcing the summon, he sighed: "... Why do you call me?"

"We need to find Yun Tingcang; we're trapped here and ordinary methods fail. As his third brother, you might sense his direction, or perhaps there is a strong trace of his aura nearby?" Shi Ran explained quickly.

Yun Tingliao exhaled a long breath: "Sorry… I don't want to say!"

But after saying that, his whole body felt as if crushed, the backlash severe; even with his firm will he couldn't help a faint groan, cold sweat pouring out layer after layer, and finally he gave up.

He closed his eyes, hesitating: "He…is extremely far away, the sense blurred. But…this place…is very strange. There is a very faint…remnant of his demonic power, yet extremely ancient, and…filled with resentment and pain, not something he left willingly, but rather like…the dissipating remnants after being torn away and imprisoned here for ages…this is impossible!"

Yun Tingliao's eyes snapped open: "This is impossible…Shi Ran, could you bring me out too? I want to see for myself!"

Shi Ran fell silent—not because she was unwilling, but because Yun Tingliao was currently unable to walk, and they happened to be in the marsh…

"I know you're in Blackwater Marsh, but I have a way to keep pace with you…Shi Ran…please…"

Yun Tingliao's final "you" caught in his throat, then Shi Ran summoned him from her sea of consciousness; he blinked, feeling the abundant demonic power of Blackwater Marsh filling his body.

Still so kind! Yun Tingliao smirked, lifting his gaze—only to see Wei Yuzhu earnestly scrutinizing him.

"I didn't expect you to be doing so well!" Wei Yuzhu sized him up from head to toe: "If I were Shi Ran, I'd first strip off your wolf pelt!"

Yun Tingliao gave a faint smile: "Too bad you're not Shi Ran…"

Seeing the two about to quarrel, Shi Ran helplessly stood between them: "Hey, hey, saving lives comes first—can we put our grudges aside for later?"

Wei Yuzhu snorted coldly, her sword sheath twitching; she finally reined in her anger and turned away. Shi Ran was right—now truly isn't the time to quibble.

Yun Tingliao likewise ignored her, drawing a deep breath of the marsh's cold, damp air mixed with rot and demonic power; his pallid face unexpectedly flushed with an odd hue.

He closed his eyes; his legs, unable to stand, seemed not to hinder his feel of the earth. He slowly bent, plunging a hand deep into the icy, sticky mire, fingertips trembling slightly, as if touching the planet's pulse.

Everyone held their breath. Only Yun Tingliao's body emitted an extremely faint, barely perceptible silver halo, which stood apart from the marsh's pervasive impurity‑demon power, yet strangely from it emanated thread after thread of an extremely ancient, weak qi bearing a strong imprint of pain.

Time seemed to turn viscous. After a moment, Yun Tingliao's eyes flew open, his peach‑blossom eyes brimming with shock and disbelief, even a hint of fear.

"How?" Ling Xiao asked solemnly, his gaze sharp as a sword, able to pierce all falsehoods, yet now unable to fully see through this marsh shrouded in warped space and ancient resentment.

Yun Tingliao's voice was dry, with a barely perceptible tremor: "…I have found that residual direction. But…this is absolutely not a demonic power mark my elder brother left willingly. It feels…like a part of his body, or a strand of his essence, forcibly torn away, imprisoned, polluted, tormented for countless ages…resentment soaring, nearly dissipated, leaving only the instinctive pain‑filled wail…"

He pointed toward a direction where the mist was especially thick, the warped trees seeming to form a constantly writhing giant gate. "The residual traces point there, strongest and also most…painful. The marsh's spatial folding likely took that point as its core."

This conclusion sent chills down everyone's spine. To sever a portion of a demon‑king‑level being's power or essence, imprison and torture it until it breeds such resentment, even warping space into a death‑land—what a horrifying method!

"No time to hesitate." Shi Ran gritted her teeth, resolve flashing in her heterochromatic eyes: "Since we have a direction, we must go. My third senior brother and the others can't wait!"

"Go!" Ling Xiao made a snap decision, looking at Yun Tingliao, only to notice his wheelchair had changed—yet it didn't hinder keeping pace—"You lead the way."

The group no longer hesitated, following Yun Tingliao's indicated direction, trudging hard through the peril‑laden marsh.

The danger here far exceeds imagination. Space is unstable; sometimes seemingly solid ground collapses instantly into a devouring mire; sometimes a single step causes the surroundings to shift abruptly, as if flung miles away or trapped in a wall‑ghost loop. The warped plants are not only ferocious but also highly aggressive and toxic, vines coiling like silent snakes to ambush, their spores corroding protective spiritual light. Beneath the murky water lurk strangely shaped beasts contaminated and demonized by the marsh's resentment; sensing human presence, they launch frenzied, blood‑thirsty attacks.

Ling Xiao's sword qi swept across, precisely severing the attacking vines, cleaving sudden spatial folds, and his icy sword intent instantly froze the poisonous insects and water beasts that lunged out.

Wei Yuzhu's sword light fell like rain, guarding the flanks; her sword technique was agile and swift, specially picking out those tiny, hard‑to‑defend poisonous creatures to strike.

Luo Changfeng kept tossing formation disks and talismans, attempting to stabilize the surrounding chaotic magnetic field and space; though the effect was limited, it could at least give early warning of the most dangerous zones.

Shi Ran kept close to Ling Xiao, her immortal‑demon power forming a unique barrier that repelled miasma and also offered some resistance to resentment‑driven attacks; most of her focus was on caring for and guiding Yun Tingliao.

Yun Tingliao frowned as he pressed forward; although his wheelchair consumed some demonic power, his perception of that pain imprint grew ever clearer, continually correcting his course.

His complexion grew ever paler, not just from depletion but because, as he neared the core, the anguished wail of that tormented primal source echoed ever more clearly in his perception, as if he felt it himself.

"Left‑front…three hundred steps…careful, the space there…is like a shattered mirror…" Yun Tingliao panted the instruction, fine cold sweat beading his forehead.

Ling Xiao obeyed, swinging his sword; the blade traced an arc, and the previously normal‑looking marsh vista ahead shattered like glass, revealing a narrow passage twisted and slick with black, mucus‑like substance, within which a nauseating stench and strong spatial undulations emanated.

"This damned place!" Wei Yuzhu cursed low, slicing with a single stroke the pallid ghostly hand that protruded from the passage wall.

Just as they were about to pass through this uncomfortable passage, an abrupt change occurred!

The viscous black substance around the passage suddenly writhed violently, coalescing into a huge, featureless black skull; the skull opened its soundless maw, and an extremely powerful suction targeting the primordial spirit and spatial perception erupted!

Everyone's bodies jerked violently, feeling as if their souls were about to be torn out; their spatial perception instantly fell into utter chaos, even Ling Xiao's sword light hesitated slightly.

"Steady your hearts and minds!" Ling Xiao shouted low, his vast immortal power attempting to stabilize the surroundings.

However, this power was strangely extraordinary, not a pure energy shock. The one who bore the brunt, relying on keen perception to guide the way, was Yun Tingliao! He already resonated deeply with that painful mark; his mind and spirit tumultuous, he suddenly suffered this abrupt primordial spirit attack, let out a muffled groan, his pupils instantly scattered, and his perception was completely disrupted and cut off.

"Direction… gone…" he gasped out a few words, his body went limp, and he nearly fainted.

Almost at the same moment, the suction from the black skull caused violent spatial ripples; the ground beneath their feet vanished suddenly, and they were hurled once more into the chaotic spatial turbulence.

The world spun, light and shadow twisted.

Thud! Thud!

Several people fell hard again, but this time not into a mire; instead, they landed on a relatively solid expanse of black rock slick with wet moss and shattered bones. Around them loomed jagged stones that formed a natural labyrinth, and overhead still hung dense poisonous miasma and twisted vegetation, oppressive enough to make breathing difficult.

"Cough… cough… Yun Tingliao! How are you?" Shi Ran immediately checked on Yun Tingliao, whom Ling Xiao had protected as he fell.

Yun Tingliao coughed violently, his eyes regained a glimmer of clarity, but they were filled with pain and defeat: "... Sorry… my perception was forcibly cut off… the direction of that core mark… has blurred…" He struggled to regain it, but his sea of consciousness was in utter chaos, leaving only the dizziness and stabbing pain from that black skull.

Wei Yuzhu quickly surveyed the surroundings, her face grim: "We've been moved again! Was that thing deliberately guarding that spot?"

Luo Changfeng examined the compass, now completely useless and even cracked, his voice dry: "It's not just a displacement… we seem to have fallen into something far more troublesome."

Ling Xiao rose, extending his divine sense to its fullest, but the feedback remained chaotic and confused. He said slowly: "We have fallen into… an ancient ruined formation. It is not natural; it was man-made, exploiting this place's inherent resentment and spatial folds, extremely ancient and vicious, designed to trap, kill, and refine."

His gaze swept over the seemingly chaotic jagged stones: "These stones are the formation's base. What attacked us just now was the embodiment of resentful evil condensed by the formation."

A deadly formation within a deadly place!