Xiao Chen had single-handedly dismantled the Revenge Alliance, emerging from the conflict as the most talked-about figure on the island. Now, word spread that he and Yan Qingcheng’s Undying Alliance were about to engage in a ‘game of life and death,’ drawing the attention of every faction. Practitioners across the island waited with bated breath for the ‘lethal chase’ to begin. Many alliances had already begun moving deeper into the island. Since they were trapped on Dragon Island, the initial panic had given way to a grudging acceptance. People started planning for the future, seeking suitable places to cultivate. But Xiao Chen knew nothing of this. He had already ventured into the central region of Dragon Island, effectively standing up Yan Qingcheng and leaving her to perform her solo act.
Before him stretched a vast, blinding white Bone Sea. He stood frozen, his eyes sweeping over humanoid skeletons, the bones of giant birds, the remains of savage beasts, and the skeletal frames of ancient dragons—a sea of white that stretched to the horizon, as far as the eye could see. The bones ranged from a mere meter or two to fifty or sixty meters, some even exceeding a hundred meters. Endless white frameworks covered the earth. A chilling murderous aura permeated the Bone Sea, sending a shiver through his soul. It was so unbelievable, so deeply terrifying. Even at high noon, this place remained deathly cold. The sunlight that fell upon it was pale and offered no warmth. Not a sound disturbed the bone-white ground. It was a true sea of the dead. Behind him, the towering ancient trees stood equally silent, untouched by any breeze, adding to the eerie atmosphere. In the distance, the mist-shrouded snowy mountains only deepened the terror of this land.
“Crack, crack, crack—”
Qin Guangwang, Yanluowang, and Lunhuiwang seemed deeply unsettled, constantly shifting their joints. The soul-light within their skulls flickered, and the lotus-mark imprints on their foreheads blazed like dancing flames.
Keke curled into a snowy white ball atop Lunhuiwang’s head. She blinked her bright eyes, curiously surveying the world of bones, then raised a tiny paw to point at the towering stele deep within the Bone Sea, uttering “Ya-ya!” sounds.
Xiao Chen had already noticed the grim, terrifying stele. It sent a tremor through his very soul, as if some malevolent force within the stone was tugging at his mind.
“Let’s go take a look,” he decided. Since he had already entered the Bone Sea, there was nothing left to fear. He would uncover the truth.
Endless bones carpeted the ground. Each step produced a “crunch, crunch” that grated on the nerves. Countless ages had passed, and many of the bones had weathered and crumbled, leaving a thick layer of white powder that made the remains all the more horrifying. Every inch of earth was white, devoid of any vegetation. As he moved deeper, the murderous aura thickened, eventually giving way to wisps of black mist that made the deathly sea even more sinister.
After advancing several li, he drew near the massive stele. He stopped—not from fear, but because here the black mist seemed to have solidified, forming swirling vortexes of energy among the bones. He tossed a piece of bone ahead; it was instantly shredded into dust.
Still a li away from the ancient stele, the malevolent currents blocked his progress. The black clouds writhed like ghostly apparitions, occasionally emitting piercing shrieks like the wails of demons.
Qin Guangwang, Yanluowang, and Lunhuiwang’s soul-lights flickered unsteadily, reflecting their deep unease.
“Roar—” A blood-curdling howl rose as a hideous skeleton over five meters tall struggled within the black mist before collapsing into pieces.
“Ooooh—” A disheveled woman with an upper body seven or eight meters long, covered in cyan scales, writhed and wailed. Her lower half was a serpent’s tail over a dozen meters long. Though her face was beautiful, her expression was twisted. With her scream, all her scales opened, oozing blood-red liquid, then her entire body exploded, leaving a mist of blood.
Then a fifty-meter-long purple tyrannosaurus roared to the heavens, thrashing in the surging black mist. Its power was earth-shaking, nearly tearing the void apart, as if it could swallow the sun and moon. But in the end, it too exploded with a thunderous boom, showering the air with blood.
“All illusions,” Xiao Chen whispered, closing his eyes. When he opened them again, the terrible visions had vanished. The rolling black mist undoubtedly contained a malevolent force.
“Perhaps these are echoes of history,” he mused. He dared not rashly advance, for the black vortexes were real and could pulverize bone. His own body might not withstand them.
“This island is called Dragon Island. In the primordial age, a divine stele descended from the heavens, sealing it forever. All the dragon clans that could contend with the gods lost their power and were imprisoned on this desolate island.” Yizhen’s words echoed in Xiao Chen’s mind. He knew now that the hundred-meter-tall ancient stele before him was that very seal.
From half a li away, he could not make out its true form. Band-like demonic clouds coiled around it, revealing only a towering silhouette.
A deep regret filled his heart. Ever since learning that Dragon Island was sealed by a divine stele, a bold connection had formed in his mind. A divine stele descended from the heavens to eternally settle the Yellow River… And here, a divine stele had descended to eternally seal Dragon Island. Could there be a link between them? Could these two ancient steles share the same origin? He burned with the desire to see the stele’s true face, to check if its back also bore an ancient Qi-Refining Diagram. But the black mist blocked everything, preventing him from crossing.
In this swirling mist, the three skeletons stood motionless, deeply affected. Keke, however, seemed fascinated. She climbed atop a giant skeleton over ten meters tall to gaze at the stele ahead.
Xiao Chen stood there for a long time before moving to explore the area. He discovered a forbidden zone with a radius of one li around the stele, impenetrable. Bones several meters long, thrown more than ten meters in, dissolved like snowflakes under the sun. The destructive force was absolute, forcing him to halt.
When he circled around to the west side of the stele, the hairs on his body suddenly stood on end. He sensed danger. In the next instant, he spotted a figure as still as a fossil, standing within the black mist of the forbidden zone, extremely close to him. This was no illusion.
No comments:
Post a Comment