Chapter 145 - 142: The Cave

Chapter 145: Chapter 142: The CaveRoar! After taking such a heavy blow, the Abyssal Dragon Ape also grew angry, with a rapid increase of ferocity in its eyes. It no longer paid any heed to the slight fear it held for the Flood Dragon as a frigid energy ripple condensed on the surface of its body, even freezing the air around it. Its huge fanged mouth opened wide, and a cold air abruptly converged, instantly forming a massive cyan whirlpool ball of about fifteen feet. As the Abyssal Dragon Ape struck its chest with its claw, the terrifyingly cold whirlpool ball shot out, aiming directly for the Flood Dragon in the sky. Along its path, a faint cyan trace lingered in a straight line through the air. In the sky, the Flood Dragon’s indifferent eyes watched the spiraling whirlpool ball speeding toward it. Moments later, it too opened its dragon mouth, where a brilliant cyan light gathered, resembling the sun in the night sky. It finally collided heavily with the icy whirlpool ball, instantly creating a thunderous explosion of energy that echoed through the mountains like startling thunder. Hiss, hiss, hiss... Astonishing beams of light refracted from the point of collision, striking the area around the stream. Wherever they landed, rocks shattered, streams were severed, and large trees were uprooted, leaving complete devastation. In the wake of this fierce battle, the surroundings around Ye Xuan rapidly collapsed, forcing him to dodge repeatedly while his gaze swiftly moved around, eventually settling on the side of the stream where the Abyssal Dragon Ape had originally been. There was an inconspicuous cave entrance. "Hmm?" Initially, Ye Xuan hadn’t noticed the existence of this cave. Only upon a closer look did he realize it could be a good spot to hide from the battle. His eyes flashed, and he promptly leaped down from the rocks and slid into the cave. The cave was just large enough for one person to pass through and seemed unremarkable at first glance. However, after entering, Ye Xuan slid for quite a long distance before finally coming to a stop. At this point, Ye Xuan was hundreds of meters below the surface, enveloped in darkness. After taking out a piece of glowstone, the dim corridor ahead was illuminated. "This cave is really this deep?" Ye Xuan looked ahead into the dark corridor with some surprise. This place seemed to conceal a whole different world; at least for now, the cave seemed anything but ordinary. To be cautious, after walking a short distance, Ye Xuan would place a glowstone on the rock wall, partly to guard against unknown dangers and partly to facilitate his return later. After walking in this silent atmosphere for nearly fifteen minutes, Ye Xuan suddenly noticed a faint white light at the distant end of the dark corridor. He felt a rush of excitement and hurriedly increased his speed; as he drew closer, the light gradually enlarged, and eventually, it became a glowing white entrance. Standing at the entrance of the tunnel, Ye Xuan took a deep breath and then stepped forward. As his foot left the dark tunnel, Ye Xuan suddenly felt a burst of light before his eyes. After briefly adjusting to the brightness, he looked around, and his face couldn’t help but show a trace of amazement. Before Ye Xuan was an underground world filled with rugged strange stones, stretching across several miles. An underground river spanned the space in front of him, and in the center of the area was a square stone pool. Inside the pool, faint spots of light shined, emitting piercingly bright rays. A look of curiosity flashed in his eyes as Ye Xuan approached the edge of the stone pool. At the bottom, he could see blue crystals that resembled gemstones, some as small as a thumb and others as large as a fist. A peculiar fluctuation emanated from them. "What are these?" Ye Xuan dipped his hand into the chilly pool water and broke off a blue crystal. Immediately, a surge of intensely cold energy transmitted from the palm of his hand. "Is this... Underworld Ice Spirit Crystal?" Ye Xuan’s eyes suddenly lit up with delight. The Underworld Ice Spirit Crystal, a kind of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Object born in the depths of the earth, flourishes only in extremely yin and cold places. It possesses miraculous effects in cleansing marrow and refining bones. Moreover, because of the extremely pure force from beneath the earth, it could even help those who had reached the peak of their current phase to break through the barriers of advancement, although it did not guarantee a hundred percent success rate and possessed a significant chance of failure. However, with the considerable amount of Underworld Ice Spirit Crystals in this pool, if he could refine them all, breaking through the current stage’s barrier should not be difficult. These crystals held powerful effects for both humans and Demon Beasts; no wonder the Abyssal Dragon Ape outside had been so excited. It had probably also discovered this underground passage but had no chance to benefit from it. Whether it could survive against the Flood Dragon was another matter, and now their loss was his gain. Boom! Just as Ye Xuan was about to retrieve the Underworld Ice Spirit Crystals, the ground beneath his feet suddenly cracked open, and a yellowish-brown python tail furiously burst out, striking fiercely at Ye Xuan. At the moment the ground beneath his feet exploded, Ye Xuan’s figure soared into the air, and he reflexively struck out with a palm, his powerful Palm Force crashing against the yellowish-brown python tail, emitting a deafening, muffled sound. "Second Rank Peak Demon Beast, Rock Armor Python!" After the clash, Ye Xuan retreated several meters. What emerged from the ground was a massive yellowish-brown python. Apart from its enormous size, what distinguished it from ordinary snakes was a thick layer of yellowish-brown armor that seemed indestructible. The Rock Armor Python lived its entire life in the underground rock crevices and, being the guardian of the Underworld Ice Spirit Crystals, had extremely thick defenses, making it one of the most challenging types among Second Rank Demon Beasts. However, for the present Ye Xuan, a Second Rank Peak Demon Beast posed no significant threat. "These Underworld Ice Spirit Crystals are mine!" A flash of determination in his eyes, Ye Xuan drew his Spiritual Edge Sword from behind and slashed out, the sword light sharp as a crescent moon, slicing through the Rock Armor Python’s thick yellowish-brown armor in an instant, splitting skin and flesh. Roar! In pain and rage, the Rock Armor Python’s huge lantern-like eyes suddenly flashed a crimson red, and it opened its gaping maw to spew out a cloud of corrosive gray poison mist. As the poison mist approached, Ye Xuan remained calm, casually waving his hand, unleashing several streams of Sword Qi that instantly tore through the mist, while his figure moved like lightning, slashing the python’s back and breaking open its armor, leaving a shocking gash. This slash nearly split the Rock Armor Python’s body in two. After receiving this nearly fatal blow, fear welled up in its eyes. This human before it was no ordinary disciple of Heavenly Martial Hall; although his aura was only of a Seventh Grade Martial Master, his strength far exceeded this level. Bang! With a furious smack of its tail, the Rock Armor Python crushed a rock to powder, then swept its tail, sending the head-sized rock fragments hurtling towards Ye Xuan like cannonballs, sparking fiercely through the air. Ding ding ding! Without even looking, Ye Xuan flicked his wrist, and several streams of sword light shot out, turning the fragments into dust. However, just as Ye Xuan had drawn his sword, the Rock Armor Python suddenly plunged its head into the pool water, then opened its huge maw in a frenzied suction—seemingly attempting to swallow all of the Underworld Ice Spirit Crystals! "Fiend, courting death!" Seeing the Rock Armor Python’s actions, Ye Xuan became furiously enraged. If the python swallowed them, he would be absolutely livid; his treasures were about to slip away, an utterly aggravating prospect. With no time to consider further, he pinched his middle and index fingers of his left hand together and shot out a fierce Finger Light, leaving a vivid trail in mid-air and stabbing viciously outward! Pssht! Pssht! The first Finger Light struck the python on its scale armor, rapidly drilling and breaking a hole, and the second Finger Light immediately followed, landing precisely in the hole made by the first, "pssht," blood and brain matter spurted out. Letting out a mournful wail, the Rock Armor Python’s eyes dimmed quickly as its large head hit the ground, lifeless. Ye Xuan landed next to the pool and sheathed his sword, looking at the Rock Armor Python’s corpse and shaking his head. He had been reluctant to kill, but since the Rock Armor Python desperately tried to prevent him from taking the Underworld Ice Spirit Crystals, he had no choice. With the troublesome Rock Armor Python dealt with, Ye Xuan crouched down and began collecting the Underworld Ice Spirit Crystals from the pool. Most of these crystals were fused with the rocks at the bottom, and he had to be cautious during collection to prevent them from shattering and their Spiritual Power from dissipating, possibly causing the crystals to dissolve on the spot. However, having encountered such Heaven and Earth Spiritual Objects in a previous life, Ye Xuan naturally knew how to properly collect them. After about ten minutes, all of the Underworld Ice Spirit Crystals in the pool were secured in a brocade box specifically for storing Spiritual Medicine. After the collection, Ye Xuan slowly exhaled and a gleam crossed his eyes. With these Underworld Ice Spirit Crystals, he was confident that he could concoct a pill in a short time and reach the level of a Half-step Martial Sect! Compared with the True Disciples, his only disadvantage was his Cultivation level, but once he reached the Half-step Martial Sect level, Ye Xuan believed he would have the strength to combat even the four major True Disciples!