Chapter 2203 Raw 2310 : Ninth Layer of the Abyssal Underworld
After sending off Mu Zifeng, Xiao Chen made preparations for the trip to the Abyssal Underworld and met with Lin Feng at the divine mountain’s summit three days later.
The two exchanged nods and greeted each other. Even though they both found it strange, they did not show it on their faces, both appearing extremely calm.
Soon, Hua Tianyang and the seven core Doyens appeared at the same time.
“It looks like you have more or less completed your preparations. I cannot send you off on this trip. Ku Yun, help me to send them off.”
Unexpectedly, Hua Tianyang did not get Mu Zifeng or Suiren Ji to send the two off but another core Doyen instead.
This Ku Yun was known as Master Ku Yun to others. Among the core Doyens, he was in charge of forging and blacksmithing, so he never cared about politics.
Come with me.”
“Whoosh!”
A figure seemed to jump from the other side of the world to in front of the two. Then, Master Ku Yun appeared.
Xiao Chen and Lin Feng followed behind Master Ku Yun, heading for the Heavenly Alliance’s Dao Platform.
The Abyssal Underworld was under the Central Great Realm and was separated into nine layers with their own rules, like the underside and shadow of the Central Great Realm. The two depended on each other for survival; neither could destroy the other.
“Hey, Xiao Chen, your Alloy Battle Armor seems to have reached two stars already.”
Master Ku Yun accidentally noticed Xiao Chen’s gloves and exclaimed in surprise. Lin Feng, who was at the side, also looked over, finding it strange.
Upgrading the Alloy Battle Armor required vast amounts of resources. Lin Feng’s Alloy Battle Armor was still at the 1-Star ranking.
Xiao Chen’s expression did not change as he said calmly, “I dumped all the resources I gained in the Faux God World into the Alloy Battle Armor. When I returned to the Heavenly Alliance, I asked Lord Mu Zifeng to help me upgrade it.”
“No wonder. Let’s go, then. Let’s go to the Central Great Realm.”
This was just a minor matter, so it passed after a quick mention. The group used the Dao Platform to go to the Central Great Realm.
As Xiao Chen took in the familiar surroundings, he was startled. This seemed to be the Desolate Sea; Desolate City was not far in front.
“This is Desolate City?”
“Yes. We need to do our best to keep a low profile in this matter. The Desolate Sea is a place where people can remain relatively hidden. Come, I’ll send you to the Abyssal Underworld.”
With Master Ku Yun’s cultivation, he soon brought Xiao Chen and Lin Feng before a deep abyss.
The pitch-black, deep abyss spewed out Demonic Qi. The surroundings were desolate, with no one in sight.
This was one of the relatively secret passageways into the Abyssal Underworld from the Central Great Realm. Few knew about it.
“This is the Myriad Demon Abyss. It heads straight to the ninth layer of the Abyssal Underworld. Few people use it due to the great danger. You two need to be careful,” Master Ku Yun said.
The bottom of this abyss lay beyond sight. Who knew what dangers it contained?
Xiao Chen and Lin Feng exchanged looks, then directly jumped down without any hesitation.
Neither was unfamiliar with the Abyssal Underworld. Xiao Chen had once done a mission for the Heavenly Dragon Palace in the Abyssal Underworld, killing Rakshasa Tian’s clone with one chop. However, he had gone to the first layer of the Abyssal Underworld then. This time, he was going to the even more dangerous ninth layer of the Abyssal Underworld.
As for Lin Feng, he was a Flood Dragon Human in the first place. He grew up in the Abyssal Underworld. Coming here was like going home.
Master Ku Yun watched as the two entered the deep abyss. After some thought, he shook his head and sighed.
Soon, two figures floated down from the sky. It was Suiren Ji and Mu Zifeng.
Unsurprised at the two’s appearance, Master Ku Yun merely nodded slightly to them.
“Brother Mu, who of the two do you think will bring the holy relic back?”
Mu Zifeng replied indifferently, “The Abyssal Underworld is very dangerous. Brother Suiren should be more worried about whether the two of them can come back alive or not. As for finding the holy relic…it has already been lost for so many years. It would not be strange to fail again.”
Suiren Ji smiled and said, “Stop pretending. Both you and I are very clear on this. This is our best chance of retrieving the holy relic. However, you are also right. You still need to worry whether Xiao Chen can come back alive. After all, he has not even opened a Divine Vein. As for Lin Feng, he was once a Sovereign Emperor expert. Furthermore, he grasps the Death Dao Domain. He should be able to protect himself.”
Mu Zifeng’s expression changed slightly as he smiled. “It looks like Brother Suiren is sure that Xiao Chen would definitely fall in the Abyssal Underworld. Let’s see who will be able to return alive in the end.”
The two rebutted each other, hiding ruthless words behind politeness. After a few exchanges, the atmosphere turned exceptionally tense.
Master Ku Yun did not find this strange. Suddenly, he raised his eyebrows and said seriously, “The two of them succeeded in reaching the Abyssal Underworld. It is time to go.”
After saying that, Master Ku Yun left first, not lingering here.
Mu Zifeng and Suiren Ji both snorted coldly and left simultaneously, not a trace of their presence remaining.
--
At the bottom of the Myriad Demon Abyss:
Xiao Chen and Lin Feng landed one after another. They looked around and saw a bleak and desolate scene. Tall bushes grew on the ground, and gray clouds lingered in the sky. A blood moon hung high amid the gray clouds.
After Xiao Chen landed, he sheathed his drawn saber. Things had not gone smoothly in the Myriad Demon Abyss. There had been many ferocious Abyssal Underworld lifeforms in there, especially Vampire Bats—a flabbergasting amount. If one got careless, one would end up a dry corpse.
Xiao Chen sized up the surroundings. A large, gushing river flowed at the limits of his vision. There seemed to be a silhouette of a city even farther away.
With a thought, the Yin and Yang Divine Energy Seas in his dantian flipped around.
This revealed the Divine Energy Sea filled with surging Demonic Qi, making Xiao Chen’s aura suddenly change. His eyes turned black, filled with demonic nature. He gave off an aura that seemed to want to devour the world, inspiring fear.
Xiao Chen could sense Demonic Qi Divine Energy filling his meridians. Violent and bloodthirsty emotions spread throughout his body. This was the first time he let Demonic Qi Divine Energy fill his body without restraint; he was not accustomed to it.
After a while, Xiao Chen calmed down and recovered his usual mental state. Now, he could easily control the violent and bloodthirsty emotions that came from the Demonic Qi Divine Energy.
Lin Feng, who was watching from the side, felt flabbergasted. It was like the previous Xiao Chen completely vanished in the blink of an eye.
Now, a bona fide Demonic Dao Sovereign Emperor, exuding a scary aura from all over his body, stood beside Lin Feng.
While Xiao Chen was still finding his footing, Lin Feng suddenly said, “Two people present too big a target. Let’s travel separately for now and meet at the Final Blood Battlefield half a month later.” This proposal startled Xiao Chen.
“Alright.”
Upon further thought, splitting up temporarily was pretty good as well. Xiao Chen nodded in agreement.
As Xiao Chen watched the other party leave, he guessed that Lin Feng had some people he wanted to see or things he wanted to do.
After all, the other party grew up here and previously became a Sovereign Emperor here.
This was fine as well since Xiao Chen did not understand what Lin Feng was thinking. Moreover, Lin Feng’s Death Dao Domain was extremely difficult to deal with.
Keeping his guard up against Lin Feng all day long would be tiring.
Xiao Chen changed into black clothes and put on a conical bamboo hat. Then, he got the Demon Blood Vulture to sit on his shoulder. This getup looked perfect.
He chose to go a different direction from Lin Feng and headed forward.
The Abyssal Underworld had a total of nine layers. The ninth layer was the most bustling. Besides the Asura Race that ruled the ninth layer, the elites of the Rakshasa Race and the Yaksha Race also gathered here.
The reason was none other than the Underworld God Hall’s headquarters being located in the ninth layer of the Abyssal Underworld.
Aside from the various races of the Abyssal Underworld, there were also several Demonic Dao cultivators in the ninth layer of the Abyssal Underworld. Most of these people were here on experiential training.
The Demonic Dao cultivators and the Abyssal Underworld cultivators practiced similar Cultivation Techniques. Hence, they frequently communicated with each other.
As Xiao Chen traveled, he saw several Demonic Dao cultivators. The cultivators of the Rakshasa Race and other Abyssal Underworld races did not find Xiao Chen strange, either, not giving him a second look.
There were all sorts of people here, just no Righteous Dao cultivators. Perhaps there were some, but if there were, they put on a good pretense.
The Righteous Dao cultivators were mortal enemies with the various Abyssal Underworld races. They had fought several times, trying to destroy each other.
Xiao Chen was different from Lin Feng; his understanding of the Abyssal Underworld’s ninth layer was only superficial.
In order to get to the Final Blood Battlefield, Xiao Chen needed to head to the nearest Abyssal Underworld city and obtain a map first.
Otherwise, who knew how long it would take him to find the Final Blood Battlefield if he searched blindly?
Four hours later, Xiao Chen arrived at the river that had previously been at the limits of his vision. It was a scarlet river with gushing water that looked like the filthy blood of a demonic beast. The sight made him uncomfortable.
The gushing river was like the vast sea with horrifying waves. Occasionally, many ghostly images appeared, inspiring chills.
Xiao Chen knew that this was the Holy Underworld River, a river that held an exalted position in the hearts of the various Abyssal Underworld races.
This sacred river eventually flowed to the Asura Hell, where the Underworld God Hall was.
Even the various Abyssal Underworld races could not touch the sacred river water easily without permission. Only those who made huge contributions or had noble bloodlines could enjoy a baptism in the sacred river.
As for outsiders, that went without saying.
Right now, Xiao Chen had the identity of a Demonic Dao cultivator. He could only obediently wait for an underworld boat from the opposite bank to cross this river.
Many cultivators had already gathered at the pier. There were Rakshasa cultivators, Yaksha cultivators, Asura cultivators, Demonic Dao cultivators, and many more.
Most of these people were Star Venerates or Holy Venerates; there were not many Sovereign Personages. Xiao Chen leaked a little of his aura, attracting a lot of attention. The others maintained a distance from him but showed respectful expressions when they looked at him.
Even the Asura cultivators, the masters of the Abyssal Underworld’s ninth layer, did not dare to show disrespect and be unruly.
The respect for experts in the Abyssal Underworld seemed remarkably exaggerated.
When the underworld boat reached the sacred river’s shore, no one dared to move before Xiao Chen did.
The group of cultivators there rushed to board the underworld boat only after Xiao Chen boarded.
The gushing river moved vigorously. However, it was not a problem for the underworld boat, which moved as though it was on flat land, moving against the current.
Xiao Chen stood at the boat’s bow as he looked at the river. The river was very vast, like a sea. It appeared boundless, covered in blood mist and ghostly images. Occasionally, one could hear the miserable cries of babies and the shrieks of malicious spirits.
“The beast on that senior’s shoulder should be a Demon Blood Vulture, right?”
“That can’t be wrong. What a strong Demon Blood Vulture! Its bloodline is already starting to revert. How enviable! If only I had such a demonic pet.”
“Many seniors of the Demonic Dao came to our ninth layer of the Abyssal Underworld recently. I wonder why.”
“Who knows? This is a matter for the major characters. We are not qualified to participate.”
The cultivators whispered to each other as they looked at Xiao Chen, their words replete with fear and respect.
Xiao Chen felt very satisfied with this. Before he came, he had already understood that the Abyssal Underworld worshiped experts.
If Xiao Chen maintained a low profile, he would end up attracting trouble. The Abyssal Underworld races were all cold-blooded, bloodthirsty people with fiery tempers.
Being suitably high-profile made things more convenient, deterring people from seeking trouble for him.
“Greetings, Senior.”
As Xiao Chen took in the river scene, a clearly fearful voice rang out behind him. When he turned his head back to look, he saw it was an Asura Race youth who had called out to him.
