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Chapter 351: The Ancient Demon
Chapter 351: The Ancient Demon
"No wonder they say that within the Earth Abyss, there exists the power of the Heavenly Firmament. This place is said to be the Earth Abyss, but it feels more like an interlayer of the world, a special 'small world'."
Chen Mu carefully sensed the changes within the Earth Abyss, his expression filled with contemplation.
Initially, when he heard various descriptions of the Earth Abyss, such as how it wasn't isolated from the Heavenly Firmament and that the power of the Heavenly Firmament also existed there, he found it quite strange. After all, at a depth of a hundred zhang underground, communication with the Heavenly Firmament was almost impossible, so why would the power of the Heavenly Firmament exist at a depth of a thousand zhang in the Earth Abyss?
Now, in his perception, the Earth Abyss didn't resemble the structure of the underground at all. Instead, it seemed like another layer of the world, where the Eight Aspects of Heaven-Earth were in a state of flux, with wind, thunder, water, and fire all present, including the Heavenly Firmament, albeit not as dense as the power of the Earth.
Moreover, aside from the power of the Eight Aspects of Heaven-Earth, there were also other mixed and mottled auras.
Chen Mu narrowed his eyes slightly and directed his gaze about a hundred zhang away, then his figure flashed and appeared there. He saw a sunken pit with traces of damage and faint wisps of black gas dissipating.
This black gas was now very familiar to him.
Demon Qi!
In the world above, demon qi was almost non-existent, but it still existed in the Earth Abyss.
Judging from the damaged traces, it seemed that a demon or some other creature had been killed by a Grandmaster with a single palm strike, leaving behind some faint remnants.
"This Earth Abyss is indeed full of crises..."
Chen Mu glanced at the traces and thought that although the demon killed was not of a high realm, being killed by a Grandmaster with a single strike, if a Sixth Viscera Realm cultivator, who was suppressed by the Earth Abyss, were to encounter it, dealing with it wouldn't be so easy.
No wonder Murong Yan, who was on the Wind and Cloud Rankings, hadn't sent anyone to explore the Earth Abyss this time. Although her strength barely met the requirements, she wasn't a Grandmaster and hadn't cultivated a Martial Body, so it would be extremely dangerous for her here, especially since she cultivated the Heavenly Firmament path instead of the Earth path. Otherwise, she might have been willing to take some risks to explore.
After carefully observing the remnants,
Chen Mu didn't linger and his figure flashed as he headed towards the distance.
Just as his figure disappeared into the pitch-black Earth Abyss, behind him, in the dark shadows, a ripple silently appeared, then vanished without a trace like ripples on water.
...
In the quiet Earth Abyss, there was still light.
A deep, dark light existed throughout the Earth Abyss, a dim and profound glow from the flowing earth veins. Although it was far less bright than the world above, it was still sufficient for Grandmasters to clearly see their surroundings.
In the twilight-like quietness, Chen Mu's figure moved like a wisp of black mist, silently extending in the darkness.
With his current strength, he wasn't afraid of even a Ninth-Rank Heavenly Demon, but in this unfamiliar Earth Abyss, he proceeded with caution. Using the Imperial Breath Control to conceal his aura and body, he carefully explored the surrounding area.
Grandmasters from various sects had entered the Earth Abyss, centered around the Frosty Mountain Range, and were now dispersing in all directions. Chen Mu wasn't concerned about the Grandmasters from other sects, and he wasn't in a hurry to travel far. The environment of the Earth Abyss was a new experience for him, a change in the heavens and earth. By slowly exploring here, his understanding of the Heaven-Earth was constantly improving.
Although he had reached a high realm, without entering the Blood Replacement Realm, he couldn't take the third step into the Insight Realm. But before entering the Blood Replacement Realm, accumulating more understanding was beneficial, and the system panel clearly showed the experience gained.
Thus,
Following an unknown path, Chen Mu traveled over a hundred li and finally encountered the first living creature in the Earth Abyss.
It was a small creature, only about a zhang in size, with a dry, yellowish body. On the ground, it would have been a second or third-rank demon, but in the Earth Abyss, it seemed to have undergone some transformation, and its aura was fierce.
"Ao..."
This earth wolf was walking alertly on the barren soil when it suddenly seemed to sense something, and a fierce light flashed in its demon eyes. It leaped up and pounced to the right, opening its mouth to bite.
That was where Chen Mu was standing, and he wasn't surprised by the wolf's pounce. After all, he was close enough, and he hadn't completely concealed his aura.
Bang!
Facing the wolf's pounce, Chen Mu simply raised his right hand and flicked his finger at the large wolf's head.
Accompanied by a drum-like sound, the earth wolf flew back faster, unable to even howl, and it flipped over, smashing into the yellow soil with a loud boom.
"A little interesting."
Chen Mu's expression became thoughtful as he took a step towards the earth wolf's corpse.
His previous finger strike had sent invisible Qi into the wolf's head, crushing its skull, but the force of his finger had been resisted by its hard skull, and it hadn't shattered directly.
This wasn't intentional. He had restrained the power of his finger, and it was just a simple flick, but the earth wolf's body was slightly stronger than he had expected.
"It's only around the Sixth Rank, but its body is almost as tough as a Seventh-Rank Demon King."
Chen Mu examined the earth wolf's corpse and, after some thought, wasn't surprised.
The Earth Abyss was a special place, filled with strong oppression from all sides. Any creatures that survived here, whether demons or monsters, would have bodies far stronger than those on the ground.
However,
Just as Chen Mu was crouching by the earth wolf's corpse, the distant shadows shifted, and a slender demon shadow silently approached Chen Mu's back, like a shadow with sharp claws raised, about to tear into Chen Mu's back!
"Hmm."
Chen Mu coldly hummed, his expression unchanged. He turned and swept his sleeve, releasing a surging power of Heaven-Earth, which heavily collided with the black shadow attacking his back.
The sleeve's Heaven-Earth power surged, and the black shadow was clearly overpowered, its black claws abruptly retracted, and its body nimbly leaped back.
Chen Mu narrowed his eyes to look.
The creature that had attacked him was even more bizarre. Its body seemed extremely small, like a black cat, but the claws it had raised earlier were unnaturally large, as if they had emerged from the shadows.
Most importantly, its aura was completely different from that of the earth wolf, accompanied by an extremely deep and cruel malice. If the earth wolf had attacked out of threat or for food, this black, vicious creature was purely for slaughter, without any concealment of its ferocity.
An Ancient Demon!
An almost extinct ancient demon from the world above! And this ancient demon had reached the Seventh Rank, its strength no less than that of a Seventh-Rank Demon King. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been able to withstand the power of his sleeve attack and merely be drawn back in the air.
"Trying to escape?"
Upon seeing the ancient demon attempting to flee, Chen Mu coldly snorted, having no intention of letting it off easily.
In reality, even within the Earth Abyss, a 7th-rank ancient demon was a rare sight. This particular demon was likely disturbed by the commotion caused by the numerous grandmasters entering the abyss. Perhaps, upon seeing the multitude of people, it had hidden quietly, waiting for an opportune moment. Only after spotting Chen Mu 'alone' did it stealthily follow from behind, launching a sudden attack.
True ancient demons differ from those possessed by demonic energy, as they exist in a highly peculiar state. One could say they possess a physical form, yet at the same time, they don't. They are more like solidified demonic energy, and unlike the frenzied 'demon-possessed' creatures, ancient demons are even more cunning, brutal, and vicious.
This one was no exception.
After failing to attack Chen Mu, it immediately sensed the disparity in strength and tried to escape.
"Stay right there."
However, Chen Mu didn't give it a chance. With a single step, he caught up and unleashed a fist imprint in mid-air, a powerful and vast strike that harnessed the surrounding heavenly energy, condensing it into a Heaven-Earth Seal.
The ancient demon, sensing the power of this attack, let out an ear-piercing shriek from its pitch-black body, as if it were the collective wails of countless creatures, making one instantly feel extremely uncomfortable. Simultaneously, its demonic energy surged, forming a demonic seal.
Boom!!
In the collision, the demonic seal and the Heaven-Earth Seal clashed, creating an explosive sound. But as the intense collision continued, the demonic seal proved inferior, disintegrating layer by layer, turning into pitch-black demonic energy, and being crushed inch by inch by the Heaven-Earth Seal.
Seeing that it couldn't withstand Chen Mu's techniques, the ancient demon shrieked again. Its body dramatically expanded, and a violent and frenzied aura soared, as if it were determined to fight Chen Mu to the death.
But the next moment—
Bang.
The swollen, massive body suddenly tore like black cloth, bursting open and disintegrating into seven or eight shattered fragments, scattering in all directions!
"Is this what they call Demon Disintegration, Shapeless Transformation?"
However, Chen Mu, witnessing this scene, didn't show any surprise. Although this was his first encounter with a genuine ancient demon, he had read about their abilities in many ancient texts and had learned about them from grandmasters like Feng Hongsheng. He was well-informed about their tactics.
Demon Disintegration, Shapeless Transformation—this was one of the ancient demons' abilities. Their bodies could materialize, allowing them to clash with powerful demon kings, but they could also dematerialize, disintegrating into numerous fragments and then reassembling without affecting their survival.
"Let's not waste words."
Chen Mu didn't say more. With a simple gesture, he dispersed the Heaven-Earth Seal, which had been surging with power, into eight distinct seals, each pursuing a different shattered shadow.
Bang!
The Wind Seal caught up with one fragment, instantly tearing it into countless pieces, from which faint, piercing shrieks could be heard.
Crackle!
The Thunder Seal reached another fragment, obliterating it completely, turning it into a wisp of black smoke without a single cry.
The Fire Seal, Water Seal, Heaven Seal...
Each of the dispersed Heaven-Earth Seals attacked a different shadow, and upon reaching their targets, they unleashed their power, annihilating them one by one. The piercing shrieks filled the air until the last fragment disintegrated, and the surroundings finally calmed down.
Meanwhile, Chen Mu's true body pursued the largest fragment. He had already suppressed it, using his Primordial Essence True Force to capture it, turning it into a seemingly solid yet insubstantial black mist in his palm. The mist continuously churned and transformed, occasionally revealing human faces that glared at Chen Mu with fierce and brutal shrieks.
Chen Mu paid no heed to the ancient demon's transformations, his gaze fixed on the black mist.
Suddenly, in his line of sight, the mist underwent another transformation, revealing a face he was all too familiar with—it was Xu Hongyu, seemingly crying, looking at him with a plaintive expression, as if she couldn't understand why he was being so brutal.
But as Chen Mu focused, that illusion vanished, and once again, only the savage and vicious black mist faces appeared.
"Shapeless Transformation, Demon Disintegration..."
Chen Mu stared at the ancient demon's remnant in his palm, which, despite its desperate struggles and transformations, couldn't escape. His eyes revealed a keen interest.
Shapeless Transformation.
He had some understanding of this state. Just like the essence of heaven and earth, water, fire, wind, and thunder could transform into the power of heaven and earth, or they could manifest physically. Even his daily ability to burrow underground utilized Shapeless Transformation.
However, this Shapeless Transformation was limited to the most basic structure between heaven and earth. He couldn't make his body exhibit the same Shapeless Transformation, completely immune to blunt attacks and techniques, even if he cultivated the Heaven-Earth Martial Body.
But ancient demons could.
Their bodies could materialize, becoming stronger and more resilient than steel, and they could also dematerialize, splitting and disintegrating at will, even manifesting different appearances.
Of course, the ancient demon he had captured was merely a 7th-rank, not yet reaching the level of a Demon Emperor. According to rumors, Demon Emperors could truly achieve formlessness, shapelessness, and boundless transformations, becoming unpredictable and enigmatic.
Even so,
This ancient demon still possessed the ability to manipulate minds, affecting Chen Mu's vision to some extent. If not for his mental state reaching the culmination of clarity, it wouldn't have been so easy to see its true form.
Most crucially, as Chen Mu closely observed it, he could sense the essence of the ancient demon, which seemed to exist independently outside the Eight Aspects of Heaven-Earth, not belonging to any of the fundamental elements. It was the only thing he had encountered that seemed to contradict the entire heaven and earth.
He had encountered demonic energy before, more than once, but his understanding of the essence of heaven and earth at that time was far inferior to his current comprehension. Now, having briefly experienced 'Heaven-Man Unity,' his insight into heaven and earth had reached a new level, and only after capturing an ancient demon could he truly feel its uniqueness.
"If the essence of ancient demons doesn't belong to this heaven and earth, then what is its origin? Did it come from beyond this heaven and earth?"
(End of Chapter)
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