Chapter 182

The dark crimson seawater silently licked the black reefs, leaving behind viscous traces like bloodstains. The air was thick with a heavy fishy odor, mixed with sulfur, decay, and an indescribable desolation after the extinction of stars. Star Arrow Sea, this ancient battlefield, merely standing at its edge was enough to make any living being feel its own insignificance and fragility.

Shi Ran, Gu Yusheng, and Mei Ruoxue cautiously explored forward along the reef area formed by architectural ruins. The runic stone carvings underfoot had long blurred, and the residual formation fluctuations were as weak as a candle in the wind, only able to dispel the most uncomfortable deathly aura within a radius of several zhang, but powerless against visible spatial rifts and shadows lurking in the deep sea.

"According to the fragmented information remaining in the Blazing Sun Envoy's shard, the core area lies to the true north, but the specific route is unclear." Shi Ran said softly, the Heaven-Scanning Order in her sea of consciousness trembling slightly, resonating with the distant golden light point, while continuously scanning the surroundings and marking potential dangers. "The spatial structure here is extremely chaotic; some areas appear calm, but may collapse into spatial traps the next moment."

Gu Yusheng nodded, his Bright Moon Sword Intent restrained within, but his divine sense was like a drawn sword, carefully sensing the "solidity" of every inch of space ahead. "We cannot advance in a straight line; we must detour according to spatial stability."

Mei Ruoxue focused on energy flow. Her Profound Ice Spirit Body was especially sensitive to energy changes. "Three hundred steps to the left, there is a strong concentration of deathly energy, as if a powerful undead creature lurks there. The seemingly calm sea area to the right has a violent undercurrent below, with turbulent energy nature, not suitable for approach."

The three moved as if walking through a thunder zone, each step requiring careful consideration. Shi Ran's Heaven-Scanning Order's auxiliary mode remained active, her enhanced divine sense like the most precise radar, combining Gu Yusheng's spatial perception and Mei Ruoxue's energy insight, barely finding a relatively safe path on the perilous outskirts of Star Arrow Sea.

They left the reef area and officially stepped onto that dark crimson "sea surface." Rather than seawater, it was more like a viscous mixture of energy and substance; stepping on it did not cause sinking, but gave a feeling of being mired in mud, requiring constant circulation of spiritual power to maintain movement. Occasionally, tiny spatial rifts flashed like black lightning beside them, bringing a wave of heart-pounding suction.

After advancing for about an hour, the surroundings became increasingly strange. The purple-black clouds in the sky seemed within reach, silent lightning winding within them. Giant vortices began appearing on the sea surface, slowly rotating, devouring everything; occasionally, chaotic energy streams erupted from the vortex centers, colorful yet destructive.

"Roar——!"

Suddenly, a muffled roar came from behind a giant vortex ahead. Immediately, a colossal object slowly rose. It was the wreck of a giant ship, its entire body cast from some black metal, the hull shattered and riddled with massive claw marks and corrosive holes. Yet, at the prow, a massive dark crimson crystal, still beating like a heart, was inlaid, extending countless thick, vein-like energy tendrils that entwined the entire hull.

And at the ends of those tendrils were connected over a hundred corpses clad in ancient armor! These corpses had long rotted, their eye sockets burning with dark red light from the same source as the crystal, holding broken weapons in their hands, emitting surging resentment and deathly stillness.

"It's the 'Resentful Spirit Warship'!" Gu Yusheng's pupils contracted, "Ancient texts record that in Star Arrow Sea, some powerful undead attach themselves to powerful carriers, forming such mobile disaster units. That crystal is likely the heart or core of a fallen powerhouse, eroded and mutated by the death energy and resentment here!"

As if to confirm his words, the crystal at the prow of the Resentful Spirit Warship violently pulsed, dark red light flaring brightly. The "corpse soldiers" connected to it simultaneously let out silent hisses, their movements stiff yet extremely swift as they detached from the hull, stepping on the viscous sea surface, surging toward the three like a tide! Their aura far surpassed the skeletons of the Weeping Ghost Forest, each comparable to a late Foundation Establishment cultivator, and their numbers were vast, further bolstered by an immortal battle intent and resentment.

"Form the array!" Gu Yusheng shouted low, the Gleaming Moon Sword finally drawn. Its cold sword light rose like a full moon, illuminating the dim heavens and earth, the sword intent stern, dispersing some of the resentful aura rushing toward them.

Mei Ruoxue formed seals with both hands, icy aura erupting around her; the dark crimson sea surface beneath her feet rapidly froze, centered on her, forming an ice field with a radius of several tens of zhang. "Profound Ice Domain, open!" Bitter cold aura spread; those corpse soldiers rushing into the domain had their movements instantly slowed, frost forming on their surfaces.

Shi Ran then took a deep breath, pushing the Heaven-Scanning Order's auxiliary mode to its current limit. Her divine sense poured like mercury, instantly covering the entire battlefield; each corpse soldier's movement trajectory, energy strength, and even the energy network connecting them via the dark red tendrils were clearly reflected in her mind.

"Gu Shidi, third corpse soldier on the left front, energy node! Shijie, seventh on the right wing, resentment core!" She quickly reported the key targets.

Gu Yusheng's sword moved with her voice, a condensed moonbeam sword gang precisely shooting out, not seeking area damage but like a scalpel, instantly severing a thick energy connection inside that corpse soldier's body on the left front. The corpse soldier's body stiffened, the red light in its eyes rapidly dimming, its movement halted.

Mei Ruoxue then flicked her finger; a tiny, nearly transparent ice needle shot out silently, precisely piercing the eye socket of that corpse soldier on the right wing, instantly freezing and shattering its resentment core! The corpse soldier clattered apart.

Capturing the leader first! Shi Ran's precise guidance allowed Gu Yusheng and Mei Ruoxue's powerful attacks to achieve maximum efficiency, instantly dismantling the two most threatening nodes in the corpse soldier tide.

However, the Resentful Spirit Warship did not stand idly by. The crystal at its prow pulsed violently again, more dark red energy surging out, repairing the severed tendrils; simultaneously, light gathered on the crystal's surface, a thick beam containing destruction and deathly aura, like a cannon, booming toward the three standing on the ice field.

"Not good!" Gu Yusheng's face changed; this beam's energy level had already approached the full-force strike of an early Nascent Soul cultivator! He leapt forward intending to hard-block it.

"Let me do it!" Shi Ran stepped ahead. She knew Gu Yusheng was strong, but hard-blocking this strike would surely injure him. She clasped her hands around the Heaven-Scanning Order, her spiritual power and divine sense pouring in at an unprecedented speed.

"Basic Energy Barrier (False), maximum output! Superimposed, weak spatial deflection!"

"Hum——!"

A pale silver oval light curtain, its surface flowing with fine golden runes, instantly appeared before the three. At the same time, the space before the light curtain again showed that fine, nearly imperceptible distortion.

"Boom——!"

The dark red death light fiercely struck the silver light curtain! The light curtain violently trembled, the golden runes on its surface flickering, as if about to shatter at any moment. Shi Ran's face turned pale, a trace of blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, the spiritual power and divine sense maintaining the light curtain being rapidly consumed. However, that "weak spatial deflection" played a key role; it did not completely cancel the death light, but caused its energy trajectory to undergo a minute deflection and scattering, reducing the actual force acting on the light curtain by nearly thirty percent!

It was precisely this thirty percent reduction that allowed the silver light curtain, on the verge of shattering, to stubbornly withstand this terrifying blow!

The light curtain dissipated; Shi Ran staggered a step, caught by Gu Yusheng. She quickly swallowed a recovery pill, but her eyes remained fixed on the Resentful Spirit Warship. "Its core…… defense has periodic fluctuations! The next attack condensation needs three breaths!"

"Three breaths…… enough!" Gu Yusheng's eyes flashed with sharp light. He no longer held back; his Bright Moon Sword Intent surged skyward, his entire body seeming to transform into a true full moon, pure radiance falling, purifying evil.

"Sword Song · Moonfall!"

He became sword light, man and sword as one, like a pure meteor falling from the nine heavens, carrying unstoppable sword intent and purifying moonlight, directly shooting toward the beating dark crimson crystal at the prow of the Resentful Spirit Warship!

Mei Ruoxue simultaneously exerted force, her Profound Ice Domain contracting to the limit; icy aura no longer dispersed to freeze, but all condensed in her palms, forming a blade several zhang long, entirely crystalline and transparent, the "Profound Ice Soul-Severing Blade," following Gu Yusheng's sword light, she slashed toward the thick energy tendrils connecting the crystal and the hull!

"Crack——!"

Gu Yusheng's sword light first struck the dark red crystal! Countless cracks appeared on its surface, from which came a sharp, painful soul-wail. Immediately after, Mei Ruoxue's Profound Ice Soul-Severing Blade fell, those energy tendrils breaking in response!

Deprived of core energy supply, the entire Resentful Spirit Warship violently trembled, the dark red light on its hull rapidly fading. The remaining corpse soldiers, like puppets with severed strings, stiffly collapsed one by one, the red light in their eyes extinguished.

"Boom——!"

The giant prow crystal completely shattered, turning into countless dark red light points scattering across the sky. The massive warship wreck, having lost its sustaining force, slowly sank into the viscous dark red seawater, leaving only a few bubbles before vanishing without trace.

The battle ended, the three exhaled in relief. Gu Yusheng's breath was slightly labored, obviously that "Moonfall" strike had consumed greatly. Mei Ruoxue's face was also somewhat pale. Shi Ran was nearly exhausted, continuously maintaining high-intensity auxiliary mode and executing spatial deflection and energy barrier, placing the heaviest burden on her.

"Thank you." Gu Yusheng looked at Shi Ran, his eyes openly expressing admiration and gratitude. Without her holding up the barrier at the critical moment and precisely finding the weak point, this battle would not have gone so smoothly.

Mei Ruoxue silently handed over two ice-blue pills, of higher quality than the previous Clear Heart Pills: "Profound Ice Returning Origin Pills, recover quickly."

Shi Ran took and swallowed them; a mighty yet cool medicinal power dissolved, swiftly replenishing her consumed spiritual power and divine sense. After adjusting her breath for a moment, she then smiled wryly: "This Star Arrow Sea, indeed full of killing intent at every step. A mere wreck turned Resentful Spirit Warship possesses such power……"

"But it also proves our chosen path is correct." Gu Yusheng gazed northward, his eyes deep, "The closer to the core, the stronger the obstructions. The altar indicated by the Blazing Sun Envoy's shard must lie ahead."

After a brief rest, the three continued forward. Having gained experience dealing with the Resentful Spirit Warship, they became more cautious. Subsequently, they encountered several more dangers: there were "Void Jellyfish" capable of consuming divine sense, energy storms formed from chaotic law fragments with no discernible pattern, and even once, they nearly got swallowed by a suddenly expanding spatial rift, escaping only thanks to Shi Ran's early warning and Gu Yusheng forcibly tearing space.

As they went deeper, the Heaven-Scanning Order's sensation grew stronger; that golden light point seemed within reach. At the same time, Shi Ran could feel that the residual demonic qi in the surroundings became increasingly evident, even purer and older than the disaster zones outside.

Five days later, they arrived at a strange sea area.

Here, the seawater was no longer purely dark crimson, but presented a strange, rainbow-oil-slick-like hue, constantly shifting, emitting a distorted halo. Countless huge, island-like bones floated on the sea surface, some belonging to unimaginable giant beasts, others resembling remnants of some giant puppet. And at the center of these bone islands stood a colossal pyramid-shaped altar built from piled black giant stones!

The altar towered, piercing the purple-black clouds, its scale far beyond imagination. Its surface was engraved with countless complex and ancient runes, those runes not static but slowly flowing, like living things, emitting heart-pounding energy fluctuations. A sense of vastness, antiquity, yet simultaneously filled with ominous and destructive aura, spread from the altar.

And in Shi Ran's sea of consciousness, the golden light point sensed by the Heaven-Scanning Order was located at the very summit of this altar!

"It's here……" Shi Ran murmured, her heartbeat involuntarily quickening. She could feel that what the Heaven-Scanning Order conveyed was not merely desire, but also a faint…… apprehension?

Gu Yusheng and Mei Ruoxue were also stunned by the altar's grandeur and strangeness. They could clearly sense that the space around the altar was relatively stable, but that stability seemed more like a calm forcibly bound by great power, beneath which lurked violence capable of tearing everything apart.

"The altar has protection." Mei Ruoxue said in a tight voice. She pointed to around the altar's base, where a faintly visible layer of transparent, distorted light membrane could be seen, with black lightning occasionally flashing across it.

"Not only that," Gu Yusheng added, his sword heart clear and bright, having sensed something deeper, "Inside the altar, there is an extremely subtle, yet…… immensely powerful demonic aura slumbering."