133: Xuan Turtle

Leaving the oppressive Domain of the Mountain-Moving Ape, Gao De and his group returned along the original path, the atmosphere somewhat subdued.

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Clearly, the might and arrogance of that Rank Three Peak Old Ape served as a warning to Gao De, who had been full of confidence following his Breakthrough—the waters in the depths of the Yunmeng Marsh were far deeper than he had imagined.

However, just as they reached the halfway point, still some distance from the Flower Burial Plain, an anomaly suddenly occurred!

The previously clear sky darkened without warning, as if instantly leaping from broad daylight to dusk.

A fierce gale roared out of nowhere, whipping up monstrous waves, and the calm water surface churned violently as if boiling.

An indescribable, ancient, vast, terrifying pressure, seemingly originating from the Primordial Great Desolation, spread out like a tangible tsunami from afar, enveloping the entire world!

Gao De abruptly stopped, while Green Edge and Iron Pincer instantly tensed their bodies, their eyes filled with uncontrollable terror.

What they felt was an absolute suppression on the level of life itself, far purer and more suffocating than the Demonic Qi of the Mountain-Moving Ape.

"What... is that?" Green Edge's voice held a trace of imperceptible trembling.

Gao De's Purple Lightning vertical pupils stared intently at the water area dozens of miles ahead that had suddenly become chaotic.

They saw that at the center of the fierce winds and massive waves, a huge, vaguely outlined "mountain" was slowly rising from the deep water, breaking through layers of waves with a slow yet unstoppable momentum!

No, that was not a mountain!

As the "mountain body" continued to rise, its outline gradually became clear.

It was, unexpectedly, the carapace of a monstrous beast of unimaginable size!

The shell was a deep, Profound Black, as if it had borne the weight of countless ages, covered in crisscrossing, massive ravines that resembled natural Dao Patterns; each ravine was large enough to hold a flowing river.

"Aung—!!!"

A massive roar, seemingly originating from the Ancient Great Desolation, suddenly erupted!

The roar was not sharp, but incredibly deep and powerful, piercing through the fierce winds and huge waves, shaking the Soul directly!

The sound contained not the brutality of a Yao Beast, but an ancient will—the daze of awakening after countless ages of slumber, and the declaration of its own existence.

Water splashed down like waterfalls from both sides of the rising beast's body, and a head, resembling a small island, slowly lifted out of the water.

The head resembled a tortoise's but had an eagle's beak, yet it was far more ancient and ferocious; its skin was like rock weathered by wind and frost. A pair of enormous eyes slowly opened, seemingly reflecting the movement of star rivers and the passage of time, filled with endless vicissitudes and indifference.

Immediately afterward, three incredibly long, heavily scaled, yet slightly pointed massive tails rose from the water like three ferocious pythons, slowly dancing in the air and stirring the wind and clouds.

Even dozens of miles away, Gao De could clearly see the complete form of this monstrous beast and feel the heart-stopping pressure originating from the source of its Bloodline.

"A Mysterious Tortoise... and a pure Great Desolation Remnant Species!" A tempest raged in Gao De's heart. Even with his resolute will, he found it difficult to remain completely calm at this moment.

This was not one of those descendants of Desolate Beasts that possessed only a thin trace of the Great Desolation Bloodline and whose intelligence was shackled.

This was a genuine, living Great Desolation Remnant Species, with a pure Bloodline, having survived for countless millennia!

Its massive size and overwhelming power far surpassed any being he had encountered before; even the Qianjiang Dragon King was likely far inferior!

No wonder the Desolate Beasts in this water region all possess a trace of the Great Desolation Bloodline, and no wonder their intelligence is difficult to awaken!

The source of everything likely relates to this ancient being slumbering beneath the waters!

Its mere presence, and the influence of its scattered aura and Bloodline, were enough to shape the surrounding ecosystem!

Gao De did not hesitate, condensing his own aura to the extreme, operating his Breath Concealment Talent at its Peak, and simultaneously commanded in a low voice: "Conceal all aura, dive underwater, and get away from here!"

He dared not delay even slightly, and immediately took Green Edge, who was equally intimidated, sinking silently into the deep water. Using the cover of the water and the undercurrents, they fled in the direction farthest from where the Mysterious Tortoise had appeared.

Whether the awakening of this Mysterious Tortoise was a blessing or a curse was yet unknown.

But Gao De knew that before such an existence, his strength, which had just achieved a Breakthrough, was utterly insignificant. Observing, lying low, and fleeing were the only correct choices right now.

With the appearance of this pure-blooded Mysterious Tortoise, a corner of the Yunmeng Marsh's secret seemed to have been unveiled, revealing a deeper and more terrifying truth behind it.

Even while fleeing with all his might, Gao De couldn't help but spare a wisp of Divine Sense to remotely observe the mountain-like Mysterious Tortoise.

It wasn't that he was reckless, but the scene unfolding before his eyes was truly too shocking, exceeding all his previous understanding.

The awakened Mysterious Tortoise seemed not to care about the escape of these few "little bugs" dozens of miles away.

Its island-like head slightly lifted, and its enormous eyes still held an eternal sense of vicissitude and indifference.

And within its slowly opening maw, which seemed capable of swallowing rivers, a massive black shadow was struggling frantically!

The specific form of the black shadow was difficult to discern amidst the violent energy turbulence and the Chaos Qi emanating from the Mysterious Tortoise's mouth, though its outline was vaguely visible and immensely large, no smaller than a small mountain range.

The power of its struggle was terrifying—the sudden change in the dark sky, the howling gale, and the boiling waves were surprisingly not due to the Mysterious Tortoise's own Divine Ability, but merely the Celestial Anomaly triggered by the black shadow's energy leakage as it struggled!

Every twist and collision of the black shadow caused visible ripples of distortion in the Void Realm around the Mysterious Tortoise. The muffled sound of energy explosions, like thunder from the Nine Heavens, still caused Gao De's Vital Qi and Blood to surge and his ears to ring, even from dozens of miles away.

The dissipated energy shockwaves carved bottomless ravines into the water surface that took a long time to subside.

"The struggle of a mere prey... can trigger such a celestial phenomenon?!" Gao De's heart shook violently, and a chill rose from the bottom of his heart.

The "prey" in the Mysterious Tortoise's mouth was likely a terrifying existence whose strength far surpassed Rank Three, one capable of ruling the depths of the Yunmeng Marsh!

Yet, within the Mysterious Tortoise's mouth, it was like a common beast caught in a trap; all its struggles appeared futile and desperate.

The Mysterious Tortoise seemed slightly impatient with the prey's struggle. Its three long massive tails suddenly rose from the water, like three Primordial God Whips tearing the sky, lashing fiercely at the black shadow in its mouth with the power to crush everything!

"Bang—!!!"

An indescribably muffled enormous sound echoed, as if the entire world had trembled.

The black shadow's struggle suddenly diminished by more than half, and the Celestial Anomaly caused by the leaking power subsided significantly.

Only then did the Mysterious Tortoise close its massive mouth contentedly. Accompanied by a terrifying, grinding sound that made one's teeth ache, as if a star millstone were crushing rock, the powerful black shadow fell completely silent.

The Mysterious Tortoise's throat subtly pulsed, seemingly completing the swallow. Then, its enormous head slowly turned, surveying the surroundings that had returned to "calm"—

Despite the water being ravaged by the storm, there was no emotion in its massive eyes, as if it had merely completed a most ordinary meal.

Following this, the monstrous beast, resembling a living mountain, began to sink slowly, its massive carapace re-submerging into the water and kicking up a new round of monstrous waves.

The darkness in the sky gradually dispersed, and the fierce winds slowly ceased, leaving behind only the thoroughly churned water surface and a scene of deathly silence.

It wasn't until the Mysterious Tortoise's carapace had completely vanished beneath the deep water, and a long time had passed, that Gao De slowly exhaled a mouthful of Turbid Qi, realizing the palms of his tightly clenched claws were soaked with sweat.

"Rank Four... no, probably more than that!"

Gao De had already made his judgment. "To be able to suppress and swallow that terrifying black shadow, which could trigger celestial phenomena, so easily, this Mysterious Tortoise's strength definitely surpasses the ordinary Rank Four category! It might even... have crossed the threshold of Rank Five!"

Rank Five! What kind of concept was that? Even the Qianjiang Dragon King at his Peak might not have reached it! That was a terrifying existence truly capable of Moving Mountains and Overturning Seas, worthy of being called a Behemoth, and even influencing the Luck of an entire race!

No wonder the rules of this water region were so strange, and all the Aquatic Beasts were ignorant and struggled to gain intelligence.

With such an ancient Remnant Species, almost an Incarnation of the rules, slumbering here long-term, the unconscious Bloodline pressure and aura contamination it emitted were enough to suppress everything and form a unique "Domain."

This unexpected encounter caused Gao De to completely discard the slight arrogance that had arisen from his Bloodline Breakthrough.

The waters of the Yunmeng Marsh were unfathomable.

His path to dragon transformation seemed increasingly small before such a Behemoth, yet... having witnessed a higher level of power, it also became clearer and more desirable.

"I must increase my strength faster... and be more, much more cautious." Gao De took a deep look in the direction where the Mysterious Tortoise had sunk, suppressing the shock and reverence in his heart and transforming it into motivation to move forward.

He did not linger, and quietly returned to the Flower Burial Plain at an increased speed, bringing Green Edge, whose mind had also suffered a huge impact.

This place was no longer safe to stay.

At the very least, before possessing enough self-preservation strength, he absolutely could not easily set foot in this territory belonging to the ancient Mysterious Tortoise again.