chapter 12

Nanwu Mountain, Fog River's Deep Pool

A living corpse fell with a splash into the Fog River at the bottom of the deep pool. The surface was twisted and crawled with black worms, which swelled further. Other insects, which had been half-dead, seemed to come back to life after being stimulated by the blood. They crawled grotesquely on the living corpse's skin, feeding on the blood washed away by the shadowy waters of the Fog River, eventually transforming into newly formed flesh.

At the bottom of the pit, far from anyone's notice, the blood washed from the living corpse's body coagulated in the rotting water of the Fog River, turning into blood-red droplets. These droplets, as though drawn by some unseen force, slowly sank into the deep pool of the Fog River.

The living corpse crawled up from the river's surface, struggling in the foggy pool, seemingly trying to move toward the waterfall or upstream.

The surrounding evil spirits took notice of it and rushed toward its direction.

Zhang Fugui watched as the living corpse attempted to climb up several times, only to be pressed down by the surrounding evil spirits, but he was still frightened and worried for a while. Since being warned by Su Yu, he felt that the chill on his body wasn't as painful anymore, but closing his eyes did no good—there was still the great ghost above the Fog Pool. He could barely distinguish reality from illusion: "Daoist, I'm following your advice, but closing my eyes doesn't work…"

Su Yu tilted his head and saw the location of several strange auras in the distance.

Around those cultivators, at most, there was a gathering of Yin energy. The few evil spirits remaining on the fog pool had all gone to deal with the living corpse, clearly having been entranced.

The fog here could influence one's mind. Once close to the Fog River and affected by its enchantment, what one saw with their eyes was no longer true.

Su Yu reexamined the totem in his dantian. He too had been briefly affected by the fog, seeing some chaotic memories in his consciousness, which suggested that the fog influenced the five senses, and through them, one's spirit. But the totem in his dantian seemed impervious to the fog. Not a single illusion appeared before his eyes.

Just like his current eyes, they could see the truest things beneath the mist.

He was so hungry… Su Yu ground his teeth as he stared at the pure Yin energy floating around the cultivators. The feeling of hunger seemed to grow stronger. The crimson golden threads in his eyes deepened, piercing his pupils. Even his meridians seemed to gradually become more prominent as the hunger surged.

Zhang Fugui took a glance and quickly turned back. This was bad, really bad. His mind was going crazy.

He actually felt that the Daoist was more terrifying than the evil spirits below.

The Yin energy above the deep pool seemed to solidify at that moment.

Su Yu suddenly said, "Is the mist you can see getting thicker?"

Zhang Fugui snapped back to his senses. "It seems like it. There's more mist below, it looks like it's increasing."

Wait, something's wrong. The fog had been thinning out earlier. Why did it suddenly thicken again?

The mist above the pool grew darker, and the shadows of more evil spirits began to emerge. The group of cultivators defending the shore had just repelled a counterattack from a Yuan Ying-stage evil spirit, but not long after, they saw more and more evil spirits gathering toward them. The outer layer of their defensive spiritual instruments began to shatter, and the cultivators who had been hoping to sit back and watch the evil spirits fight amongst themselves now wore expressions of fear.

Even worse, some of the evil spirits tore through the defense and dragged a cultivator from the edge into the river.

The screams suddenly stopped, and the cultivators looked out, only to see the dense fog covering the deep pool. More and more evil spirits were emerging.

Not just Yuan Ying-stage evil spirits, they even saw some other cultivators. The sharp-eyed cultivators from the Li Huo Sect immediately recognized them—those cultivators were the ones they had seen not long ago at the entrance of Nanwu Mountain, who had been swept away by the Yin wind and disappeared without a trace. Now, they were all appearing here.

"What? Why are these people here??"

"Didn't they say there were only a few dozen evil spirits?!"

"What's with all the creatures outside?"

"This is strange…"

Su Yu's gaze darkened as he looked at the attacking evil spirits. His eyes suddenly shifted as he spotted several evil spirits with the Su family crest. His face changed: "No, the Su family doesn't have this many people."

Half a month ago, only five Yuan Ying-stage Su family cultivators had gone missing in Nanwu Mountain, but the cultivators appearing here were far more than that.

So many real and fake ones—among these cultivators, which ones are real, and which ones are false?!

The other cultivators' expressions changed drastically when they heard this. How could they be fake?

These evil spirits were physically attacking their spiritual instruments, and several of them had already been destroyed. How could they be fake?

In the face of such a dire situation, they could only stand helplessly and endure the attack, which was completely different from the intelligence they had gathered before.

The Li Huo Sect cultivators were covered in injuries. At this moment, a grim-faced Su family cultivator stepped forward and said to the Li Huo Sect cultivators, "You all hold on a little longer. We'll set up a formation to ask for external help."

The Li Huo Sect cultivators showed a glimmer of hope. "Okay!"

With that, the older cultivator from the Li Huo Sect led his juniors to the front to defend.

"The teleportation formation can either bring the few elders from outside here, or it can only let us few go out," another Su family cultivator said carefully, looking at the Li Huo Sect cultivators in the distance. "What about the others?"

They could escape, but the Li Huo Sect cultivators left behind here would surely die.

"The spiritual instruments we brought are almost half depleted, and we haven't even reached the bottom of the pool yet. The priority is to escape first," the grim-faced cultivator thought. What did this have to do with them? After all, the Li Huo Sect was just a pawn of the Su family, something to be used when needed. If it couldn't be used, it should be discarded in time. They couldn't even tell the real from the fake in front of them, and if they wasted another incense stick of time, they too would perish here.

The Su family cultivator asked, "Should we inform the Young Master?"

"The Young Master is busy dealing with the evil spirits ahead," the grim-faced cultivator glanced at Su Yu in the distance and whispered, "Besides, the Elder said that in tricky situations, we must prioritize protecting the Young Master."

Everything he was doing was for the sake of the Su family. If the Young Master were to die here, even if they managed to escape, they would still be hunted by the Su family.

The grim-faced cultivator looked towards the mist-filled pool where evil spirits were wreaking havoc. Suppressing his inner fear, he quickly walked towards it.

The chilling wind swirled, causing ripples on the surface of the pool. The black, bottomless water carried a rancid stench. As the grim-faced cultivator approached, the seemingly simple bottom of the fog pool appeared increasingly mysterious. Unseen currents stirred beneath the surface, as if waves were rising from deeper depths, accompanied by dark, oppressive fog, silently spreading across the entire pool.

Deeper within, at the silty bottom of the fog pool, the dark current dispersed the top layer of sludge, revealing a weathered, bluish-gray stone tablet hidden beneath the murky water.

Suddenly, the dark current seized the living corpse's ankle, and with a single pull, it dragged the corpse into the water.

From high above the mist pool, Su Yu's gaze unconsciously fell on the cultivators below. He noticed a stream of spiritual energy separating from the group of cultivators. Instead of heading towards the main group, it seemed to move toward a more remote area on the shore, where the surrounding Yin energy appeared to be flowing slowly in response.

Su Yu focused his eyes carefully, but soon, his attention was drawn by another disturbance.

"Daoist, is there something over there?" Zhang Fugui looked down and saw one of the cultivators leaving the group. It seemed as though they were summoning a spiritual instrument and fiddling with something. "What is that cultivator doing? Is he up to something!?"

At the same time, Su Yu noticed something unusual: "Is the living corpse still there?"

Zhang Fugui looked carefully and saw nothing but evil spirits. "It's gone!"

As the mist deepened over the pool, the water, resembling a massive white jade stone, seemed to be undulating silently beneath the surface.

Su Yu's sharp eyes caught sight of dark spots within the jade-like water, resembling the marks on the living corpse's body. Unable to suppress his hunger, he ground his teeth.

At the edge of the fog pool, the grim-faced cultivator, taking advantage of the others' distraction, swiftly ran to the other side of the cultivators' defensive spiritual instruments. At that moment, the other evil spirits had been attracted by the Li Huo Sect cultivators. The grim-faced cultivator hurried to the edge of the Fog River, where the Su family Elder had prepared a rare formation reliant on Yin energy. This formation could only be activated by cultivators with a body attuned to the most extreme Yin forces.

"I'm doing this for the Su family's sake." The grim-faced cultivator watched as the formation's spiritual instruments landed, quickly drawing in energy from the surrounding instruments. He carefully signaled the Su family members to come closer, but suddenly felt the ground tremble beneath him. He froze for a moment. "What's going on?!"

The Li Huo Sect cultivators turned around just in time to see other Su family cultivators approaching the formation. It was almost only the Li Huo Sect cultivators who were maintaining the formation. Their faces changed drastically.

"What are you trying to do?!"

"Could it be the Su family plans to abandon us and escape using the formation?!"

The Li Huo Sect cultivators quickly withdrew their hands, panic-stricken, rushing toward the formation's direction.

Meanwhile, Su Yu, who had been maintaining the formation up front, turned his head. Upon seeing the already set-up formation, his face immediately turned grim. That group of fools! Activating the formation now would only attract the evil spirits' attention!

Seeing the strange movement in the fog pool, Su Yu shouted, "Don't go over there!"

But it was too late. A gust of wind suddenly swept through the pool, and a fierce Yin wind rose from the water, charging toward the cultivators on the shore. The closest Su family cultivator, the grim-faced one, was caught off guard and was immediately swallowed by the surging water, followed by the sounds of screams.

At the bottom of the pit, where the sludge had accumulated, the flowing Yin energy seeped into the mud, quickly turning into a thin mist that rose again. At that moment, several drops of blood from the living corpse above fell into the sludge. In the eerie silence, the water began to turn murky, and a low vibrating sound emanated from deeper below. The mud was gradually shaken apart, revealing the true form of the pit.

Beneath the scattered mud was an ancient, bluish-gray stone door. The intricate carvings on the door became more defined with each tremor. A stone beast, which had been lying dormant, opened its eyes and devoured the surrounding Yin and blood energy. All the Yin energy was suddenly activated by the stone door, rushing upwards in a torrent.

The river of the Fog River reversed its flow toward the sky. The cultivators, in a daze, looked up and saw countless Yin energies surging upwards, forming the shadow of a giant, terrifying beast.

"What is that…?"

The beast was tall and imposing, and its shadow exuded an unprecedented oppressive aura. As soon as it appeared, every cultivator in the vicinity felt their knees weaken, too afraid to raise their heads. Its four feet touched the surface of the lake, and the entire surface of the lake seemed to transform into a massive, transparent stone tablet.

The lake turned into a stone, and the beast became its shadow.

The Yin energy above Nanwu Mountain twisted into shapes, all of it swirling like a whirlwind, rushing toward the bottom of the Fog River pit, unveiling the seal that had enveloped the entire mountain.

At this moment, at the entrance of Nanwu Mountain, the Li Huo Sect and Su family cultivators saw the Yin energy rising into the sky.

The previous seal at Nanwu Mountain had only cracked open a few meters, but now, everyone looked up and saw dense, intricate characters in the sky. Specially crafted runes formed a massive script that surged toward the clouds, enveloping the entire mountain. Everyone could now clearly see the true appearance of this seal.

A Su family cultivator holding a spiritual compass rushed over. "Elder, the compass—"

Several Su family elders gathered around to inspect it. The compass needle spun erratically. It had once been able to track the chaotic Yin energy flow around Nanwu Mountain, but now the needle was spinning wildly, and cracks had appeared on the surface of the compass.

The Yin energy was overwhelming. This had exceeded the range that the spiritual instrument could detect.

What was hidden within the cracked seal of Nanwu Mountain?!

"This is—!" The elder from the Li Huo Sect exclaimed urgently. This was no longer a treasure that a small sect like theirs could handle.

The Su family elder's expression darkened upon seeing this. "This is not the work of a fallen great power."

"Disaster!"

The white-haired elder, seated near the curtain wall created by the spiritual boat, straightened his back. His gaze slowly shifted towards the enormous seal covering the peak of Nanwu Mountain. He seemed to notice something and immediately gathered his previously slack posture. "This technique…"

"A small place like Nanwu Mountain… actually holds an ancient seal?!"

Beside him, a Su family elder's face twisted with greed as he heard the words "ancient seal."

An ancient seal? What could be hidden inside? A divine weapon? A secret treasure? Anything here would be more valuable than the site of a fallen great power, especially since even the world's number one sect—Tianlu Mountain—hadn't fully noticed it!

An ancient seal… The Eastern Huanyu cultivation world had been separated from the ancient era by thousands of years. After the turmoil a thousand years ago, all the places with ancient ruins had either been sealed off or were under the current cultivation world's control, specifically by Tianlu Mountain, the world's leading sect. Ancient seals hidden in corners unknown to the public were extremely rare. They had always suspected that the fallen cultivators in this place were not weak, but they never imagined that an ancient seal would appear here.

Amid the chaos, a Su family cultivator rushed over, shouting, "Elder, the spiritual instrument array is responding!"

This was great news! The Su family elder's face lit up with joy. "Quick, connect it to the array!"

"All Su family Yuan Ying cultivators, follow me into Nanwu Mountain!"

The white-haired elder took a few steps back and saw that the faces of the Su family, Li Huo Sect, and all the scattered cultivators had changed. Almost instantly, everyone was using their spiritual instruments to spread the news of the ancient seal's appearance. If it had only been the site of a fallen great power, the scattered cultivators would have been too afraid of the Su family's strength to spread the word. But now, the benefits far outweighed their fear. The temptation of the ancient seal was far greater than any site of a fallen power.

"This is bad." The white-haired elder's expression darkened. "The southern part of Eastern Huanyu is going to be in turmoil."

His gaze drifted toward the depths of Nanwu Mountain, and he muttered to himself, "Let's hope nothing troublesome is released."

Meanwhile, at the top of the fog pool waterfall on Nanwu Mountain, a man and a ghost struggled to stand in the fierce wind.

The Yin energy from the fog pool shot into the sky, and golden-red sealing runes appeared across the entire sky above Nanwu Mountain. The scattering Yin energy almost sliced Zhang Fugui's soul in half.

Zhang Fugui clung tightly to Su Yu's leg. "Daoist, is this another illusion?"

The fog, resembling white jade, completely dissipated. The concentrated mist in the center now appeared as ink-like black spots.

These black spots were identical to those on the living corpse and the few evil spirits still fighting. Beneath them, there was a much larger black stone.

Upon seeing the black stone, Su Yu's hunger reached its peak.

He had only one thought: to devour it.