112: Chapter 112 Strange Phenomena at the Abyss's Mouth, the First Appearance of the Soul Dev

Three days passed in a flash.

At Chen Shi, on the Desolate Plain thirty miles north of Luoxia City.

Lin Yue, clad in a green robe with the spirit slaying star scar sword hanging at his waist, stood in the morning light.

Star Radiance and her two Senior Brothers were already waiting there. All three had changed into star patterns battle attire suitable for movement. The Sword Case carried by Star Dust was now fully open, revealing seven different Star Light Short Swords; the star compass in Xing Hai's hand floated before him, its pointer trembling slightly, directed south.

“City Lord Lin, punctual.”

Star Radiance nodded slightly, her gaze lingering for a moment on the spirit slaying star scar at Lin Yue's waist, the flow of starlight in her eyes quickening slightly.

“A fine sword.”

She only spoke two words, but the admiration in her tone was clearly discernible.

“How are the preparations, Star Envoy?” Lin Yue asked.

“Everything necessary has been brought.”

Star Radiance took out a set of Formation Flags from her Storage Ring, twelve in total. The flags were embroidered with patterns of Stars and chains.

“These are the Formation Flags for the 'Star Lock Great Formation'. My two Senior Brothers will set it up here to Seal off the hundred-mile perimeter outside the Burial Dragon Abyss, preventing the Spirit Devouring Imprisoned Soldiers from escaping and also avoiding interference from other forces.”

She then took out three silver-white Talismans and handed them to Lin Yue.

“Star Viewing Talismans. Worn on the body, they can warn of Star anomalies and spatial fluctuations within a fifty-mile radius. If danger approaches, the Talisman will spontaneously combust as a warning.”

Lin Yue took the Talismans; they were warm to the touch, and he could feel the pure Power of the Stars contained within them.

“Thank you.”

“No need. It's merely cooperation.”

Star Radiance looked south, her expression serious.

“Let's go. I'll explain the situation at the Burial Dragon Abyss in detail on the way.”

The four of them transformed into four streaks of light and sped toward the south.

Along the way, Star Radiance used Divine Sense transmission to relay everything she had discovered during her seven days of investigation:

“The Burial Dragon Abyss was not naturally formed. Instead, during the great war ten thousand years ago, a Star was shattered, and the largest fragment fell here, carving out this deep abyss.”

“Star Lord and three Fellow Daoists used the Star fragment as the core to set up the 'Nine Star Spirit Sealing Formation', sealing a detachment of the Spirit Devouring Clan army at the bottom of the abyss. The Seal operates using the power of the star core fragment and has remained stable for ten thousand years.”

“However, thirty years ago, a major earthquake occurred in the Southern Region, causing the Earth Veins to shift, leading to subtle cracks in the Seal. Although the Spirit Devouring Imprisoned Soldiers cannot break out of the Seal, their 'Spirit Devourer Qi' can seep through the cracks, polluting the environment within the abyss.”

“When I investigated seven days ago, I found that the crack had expanded to three fingers wide and showed a tendency to continue spreading. In at most one year, the Seal will completely collapse.”

Lin Yue listened, rapidly processing the information.

“So, what we need to do is not just retrieve the star core fragment, but also try to repair the Seal?”

“Repairing it is the best option.”

Star Radiance nodded. “If we cannot repair it... we can only follow the backup plan left by Star Lord: destroy the Star core and perish together with the Spirit Devouring Imprisoned Soldiers.”

She paused. “But that is the last resort. The star core fragment is a supreme treasure; if we can extract and safely refine it, it will bring immense benefits to both of us.”

“How do we repair the Seal?”

“We need two things.”

Star Radiance held up two fingers. “First, someone proficient in Star Formations, who can use the Power of the Stars to redraw the Seal's formation pattern—I can handle this part.”

“Second, at least three drops of 'true dragon essence blood', to serve as the 'active formation eye' for the Seal. Dragon blood is supreme Yang and supreme rigid, capable of restraining the sinister devouring power of the Spirit Devouring Clan.”

true dragon essence blood... Lin Yue recalled the intelligence he had gathered earlier: there was a “living Dragon shadow” in the Burial Dragon Abyss.

If that truly was a Dragon, extracting its Essence Blood might be feasible.

But if it was a Dragon Corpse eroded by Spirit Devourers, the Essence Blood might already be contaminated and unusable.

“I will find a way for the true dragon essence blood.”

Lin Yue said in a deep voice, “But the prerequisite is that the Dragon shadow must be a 'living Dragon'.”

“I hope so too.”

A trace of worry flashed in Star Radiance's eyes. “However, according to the Stellar Divination, the Dragon Qi in the Burial Dragon Abyss... is impure and mixed with intense Death Qi and Devouring Aura. The situation may not be optimistic.”

As they spoke, the four had already flown a thousand miles.

The landscape ahead began to change; the plains turned into hills, and the hills gradually rose into continuous mountain ranges.

The Spiritual Qi concentration in the air was slowly decreasing, replaced by a viscous, cold, and faintly sweet, fishy scent.

Spirit Devourer Qi.

The spirit slaying star scar at Lin Yue's waist trembled slightly, emitting a faint sword cry, as if sensing the presence of a mortal enemy.

“We are almost at the periphery.”

Xing Hai suddenly spoke, the pointer on his star compass shaking violently. “Thirty miles ahead, the concentration of Spirit Devourer Qi is beginning to rise sharply. At this rate, the concentration at the abyss mouth... may have reached the 'Bone Corroding' level.”

The Bone Corroding Level meant that Golden Core Cultivators, without protection, would have their spiritual power eroded and their Physical Bodies corroded if exposed for a long time.

“Take the 'Spirit Cleansing Pill'.”

Star Radiance took out four emerald-green Medicinal Pills, swallowed one herself, and distributed the rest to the three others.

Lin Yue took the Medicinal Pill, scanned it with his Divine Sense, confirmed it was non-toxic, and swallowed it.

The Medicinal Pill entered his stomach and transformed into a cool current of Qi that spread throughout his body, forming an extremely thin purifying membrane on his surface.

The surrounding Spirit Devourer Qi would be automatically purified by about thirty percent upon approaching the membrane.

“It can only weaken it, not completely isolate it.”

Star Radiance explained, “The Spirit Cleansing Pill is specially made by my Star Track Pavilion and has a targeted effect against Spirit Devourer Qi. But if we encounter living Spirit Devouring Clan members, we still need to resist with spiritual power.”

Lin Yue nodded, secretly mobilizing the Cave Heaven Spiritual Qi to form a second layer of protection within his body.

They advanced another twenty miles.

Ahead, a gigantic, bottomless Rift Valley appeared.

The Rift Valley was a hundred miles wide, its rock walls steep as if sliced by a knife. Black Mist rolled within the valley, obscuring the view of the bottom.

This was the entrance to the Burial Dragon Abyss.

No, to be precise, the entire Burial Dragon Abyss was only a “part” of this Rift Valley—the true deep abyss lay further below.

“Stop.”

Star Radiance suddenly raised her hand.

The four of them hovered a hundred zhang away from the edge of the Rift Valley.

Star Dust and Xing Hai exchanged glances and acted simultaneously.

From the Sword Case on Star Dust's back, seven Star Light Short Swords flew out, transforming into seven streaks of light that plunged into the ground along the edge of the Rift Valley in specific positions.

Xing Hai, meanwhile, threw out the twelve Star Lock Formation Flags. The flags unfurled, resonating with the short swords, forming an invisible Great Formation covering a hundred-mile radius.

The moment the Great Formation took shape, the Black Mist churning in the Rift Valley seemed to be blocked by an invisible barrier, and its outward diffusion speed noticeably slowed.

“The Star Lock Great Formation is complete and can be maintained for seven days.”

Star Dust withdrew his hand, his face slightly pale, clearly having expended considerable effort setting up this Formation.

“City Lord Lin, my Senior Brother and I will maintain the Formation here and monitor the perimeter situation at all times.”

Xing Hai looked at Lin Yue. “Junior Sister, please be careful.”

Star Radiance nodded and turned to Lin Yue.

“Let's descend.”

The two transformed into streaks of light and plunged into the Rift Valley.

As soon as they entered the Rift Valley area, Lin Yue felt the concentration of Spirit Devourer Qi around them surge!

The membrane formed by the Spirit Cleansing Pill emitted a faint “sizzling” sound and was being rapidly consumed.

He had to increase his spiritual power output to maintain the stability of the membrane.

A starlight shield automatically appeared on Star Radiance's body. Phantom images of Stars flowed across the shield's surface, isolating the Spirit Devourer Qi outside.

“That is the Star Track Pavilion's 'Starlight Body Protection Technique'. It requires continuous maintenance using the Power of the Stars and consumes a large amount of spiritual power, but its protective effect is better than the Spirit Cleansing Pill.”

Hao Tian analyzed in Lin Yue's Sea of Consciousness, “Master can mobilize the starlight spiritual fluid from Starfall Lake to simulate a similar effect, and the consumption will be much lower.”

“Not necessary for now.”

Lin Yue replied, “Use the Cave Heaven Abilities as little as possible to avoid Star Radiance noticing anything unusual.”

He chose to resist with his own spiritual power.

Fortunately, he was now at the Late Golden Core Stage, and his spiritual power was abundant, making it easy to sustain for one or two hours.

The two descended quickly, but the Rift Valley was truly deep.

After descending for a full quarter of an hour, the surrounding light was completely swallowed by the Black Mist, and they could only perceive the environment using Divine Sense.

Just then—

“On the left side, something is approaching!”

Star Radiance suddenly transmitted her voice.

Almost simultaneously, the Star Viewing Talisman at Lin Yue's waist suddenly grew hot!

He swept his Divine Sense to the left.

In the Black Mist, three distorted Black Shadows were silently pouncing towards them!

The Black Shadows had no fixed form, appearing like three viscous blobs of ink. Countless tiny Tentacles extended from their surfaces, with Oral Structures splitting open at the tips, emitting a greedy desire to devour.

“Spirit Devouring Inferior Fiends. They possess the combat strength equivalent to the Late Foundation Establishment Stage, but when numerous, they can fuse to form stronger individuals.”

Star Radiance quickly said, “I'll handle them, you conserve your strength.”

She formed a hand Seal with her left hand, and a Starlight Rune condensed in her palm.

“Star Ray, break.”

The rune flew out and exploded mid-air, transforming into hundreds of starlight needles as fine as ox hair, accurately striking the three Black Shadows.

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—!

The Black Shadows were pierced by the starlight needles, emitting sharp shrieks, and their forms began to dissipate.

But just as they were about to completely vanish, one of the Black Shadows suddenly burst open, turning into countless smaller Black Spots that swarmed towards Star Radiance like locusts!

“Be careful!”

Lin Yue drew the spirit slaying star scar, sweeping it horizontally in a single strike.

The star patterns on the sword body lit up, unleashing a brilliant Star Scar Sword Qi!

Where the Sword Qi passed, all the Black Spots instantly melted away like ice and snow meeting the sun.

“The Spirit Devourer restraining characteristic of the spirit slaying star scar is indeed effective.”

Lin Yue felt reassured.

Star Radiance glanced at him, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes.

“Your sword... its restraining effect on the Spirit Devouring Clan is stronger than I imagined.”

“A lucky acquisition,” Lin Yue replied, sheathing his sword.

“Continue descending. These Inferior Fiends are just peripheral skirmishers; the real trouble is below.”

The two accelerated their descent.

The further down they went, the denser the Spirit Devourer Qi became, and the more Spirit Devouring Inferior Fiends appeared.

From the initial three to five, to groups of a dozen, and then to dozens surging forth like a tide.

Lin Yue and Star Radiance had to take turns clearing them out.

Star Radiance's Star Spells were exquisite and peerless; every strike was precise and highly effective, and wherever the starlight passed, the Inferior Fiends were annihilated.

Lin Yue's spirit slaying star scar was even more dominant; the Sword Qi swept across, purifying and dissipating swaths of Inferior Fiends.

Their cooperation gradually became tacit.

After clearing out the seventh wave of Inferior Fiends, Star Radiance suddenly stopped.

“Something is wrong.”

She looked down. “The frequency and number of Spirit Devouring Inferior Fiends appearing far exceed what should be expected from a normal loosening of the Seal. Logically, if the Seal merely has cracks, the leaked Spirit Devourer Qi should only be enough to breed a small number of Inferior Fiends...”

“Unless,” Lin Yue interjected, “the degree of damage to the Seal is more severe than we anticipated.”

“Or...” Star Radiance's eyes narrowed, “Someone is deliberately 'feeding' these Inferior Fiends, accelerating their growth and reproduction.”

Feeding?

Lin Yue's heart jolted.

Who would do such a thing?

The Spirit Devouring Clan is a public enemy of the continent; feeding them is equivalent to digging one's own grave.

Unless... “The Black Lotus Cult.”

The two spoke the name almost simultaneously.

Only those lunatics who are parasitized or controlled by the Spirit Devouring Clan would commit such an outrageous act!

“Accelerate the descent!”

Star Radiance no longer held back. The starlight shield on her body shone brightly, and she transformed into a meteor, plunging straight toward the bottom of the abyss.

Lin Yue followed closely behind.

After descending for about another thousand zhang, the surrounding Black Mist suddenly became sparse.

Not dissipated, but... “absorbed” by some kind of power.

Below, a dark red light was faintly visible.

That light came from a massive Altar.

The Altar was built of massive black stones, its surface covered with twisted runes. A viscous, dark red liquid flowed within the runes—that was “Spirit Devourer Blood,” condensed from highly concentrated Spirit Devourer Qi!

In the center of the Altar, a fist-sized Black Crystal Stone floated.

Inside the crystal stone, countless tiny Black Shadows could faintly be seen wriggling, emitting heart-palpitating devouring fluctuations.

Around the Altar, more than a dozen figures were kneeling.

They were all clad in Black Robes, with an open Black Lotus embroidered on the chest of the robes.

Black Lotus Cultists!

At this moment, these cultists were continuously injecting their own spiritual power and Essence Blood into the Altar.

After absorption, the Altar converted it into purer Spirit Devourer Qi, which surged through a ten-foot-wide crack below, flowing into the deeper parts of the abyss.

That crack... was precisely the damaged part of the Seal!

“They are using their own Essence Blood and spiritual power to nourish the Spirit Devouring Imprisoned Soldiers inside the Seal!”

Star Radiance's face was ashen. “Lunatics! They want to raise the imprisoned soldiers until they are powerful enough to break the Seal and wreak havoc in the Southern Region!”

Lin Yue's gaze swept across the Altar.

Besides the dozen or so cultists, three figures stood beside the Altar.

Two of them were Early Golden Core Stage Cultivators, whose aura was the same as the previous Black Fiend Lotus Venerable and Black Prison Lotus Venerable—clearly the remaining two Lotus Venerables of the Black Lotus Cult, or rather, their successors.

And the third person... Lin Yue's pupils contracted sharply.

It was a hunched-over Old Woman holding a Skull Staff.

She had no spiritual power fluctuations around her, yet she emitted a “Death Qi” that was colder and more sinister than the Spirit Devourer Qi.

The most bizarre thing was her eyes... completely black, with no whites.

Identical to the state of the Black Lotus Ancestor when he was parasitized!

“Spirit Devourer Parasite... and a Parasite with an extremely high degree of maturity.”

Hao Tian's voice was solemn. “The spirit devouring seed inside this person has coexisted for at least thirty years and has completely taken control of the host. Her strength... is Early Nascent Soul Stage.”

Nascent Soul!

Lin Yue's heart sank.

Star Radiance also sensed the Old Woman's aura, and her expression grew even uglier.

“The Black Lotus Cult actually has Nascent Soul combat power... and a monster deeply coexisting with the Spirit Devouring Clan.”

She looked at Lin Yue. “The plan has changed. We might... have to deal with these lunatics first.”

Lin Yue gripped the spirit slaying star scar tightly.

The sword body transmitted waves of excited trembling.

As if saying:

Spirit Devourers must be slain.

The Parasitized Ones must also be slain.