Chapter 1029: Soul Hooks And Spirit Nails; The Flesh Ganoderma
Chapter 1029: Soul Hooks And Spirit Nails; The Flesh Ganoderma
The Flesh Ganoderma had never been completely honest with them, and Luo Chen had known that from the very beginning. Throughout their journey, it had constantly tested him, sometimes openly and sometimes through subtler means. Until now, Luo Chen had chosen to tolerate it. As annoying as they were, they still fell within the limits imposed by their oath.
But now they were inside a place occupied by demonic beasts, where a single misstep could leave them trapped in a deadly situation. No matter how capable Luo Chen might be, Azure Tide was not a place where he could fight on equal footing. That was why he had issued a warning earlier, lest the Flesh Ganoderma entertain thoughts it should not have.
Fortunately, the warning seemed to have worked. For the remainder of the journey, the Flesh Ganoderma behaved itself and caused no further trouble. Ironically, despite being filled with dragonworms and hidden dangers, Azure Tide turned out to be the most peaceful stretch of Luo Chen's entire journey through the Heaven of the Five Elements. Not a single battle occurred before the three of them crossed the boundary marker and left behind that endless world of marshes and water.
Looking back toward Azure Tide, they all finally allowed themselves to relax, and the weight that had pressed down upon their hearts lifted somewhat. Still, when Devil's Cloud spoke up, lingering fear was still evident in his voice. "There were dozens of Dragonworm Kings in there, not to mention countless first and second-tier ones. That's practically an entire dragonworm clan. I really don't know how Prime Dragon Fallen Abyss managed to bring so many of them into the Land of Fallen Devils."
Luo Chen had already told them about this demon midway through the journey, which was why Devil's Cloud now sounded so unsettled. Rather than answering, Luo Chen continued gazing toward the distant waters, lost in thought.
Using an entire dragonworm clan to transform Azure Tide could only mean that Fallen Abyss was seeking the Powers of Water hidden within the region. Yet rather than directly assimilating into Azure Tide, it had chosen to reshape the environment first. That made one thing abundantly clear. If even a Demon Emperor was unwilling to risk complete assimilation, then the dangers hidden within that path were far greater than Luo Chen had once imagined.
The scene before him perfectly validated the warning Han Zhan had given back in Blazing Purgatory. Looks like I really did dodge a bullet.
Feeling fortunate, Luo Chen turned with a faint smile and looked across the barren plain before him. "So this is where the five elemental energies converge?"
A trace of doubt appeared in Luo Chen's eyes as he looked across the barren plain before him. In his imagination, the region enclosed by the Heaven of the Five Elements should have been overflowing with all five elemental spirit energies. As the heart of the Land of Fallen Devils, it ought to have been the most extraordinary place in the entire pocket world. Yet aside from the colossal vortex towering into the skies at its center, the landscape was desolate and lifeless, with no trace of spirit energy anywhere.
The Flesh Ganoderma moved past the two of them and planted its feet firmly on the ground. It slowly closed its eyes and stood motionless, as though embracing the world around it and sensing something. A long moment later, it opened its eyes again. "This is the place."
Without another word, it began walking forward. Behind it, Luo Chen and Devil's Cloud exchanged puzzled glances. There was no flight-restricting formation here, nor could they sense any immediate danger. Under normal circumstances, flying would have been far faster. Yet since the Flesh Ganoderma had chosen to proceed on foot, they could only follow.
As they continued onward, Luo Chen gradually noticed something unusual. The Flesh Ganoderma footsteps became more sluggish, as though an invisible force were pressing down upon it with increasing weight.
"This place seems to impose tremendous restrictions on the Flesh Ganoderma."
Within his sea of consciousness, Han Zhan's voice quietly responded, "I feel it as well. The closer it gets to that vortex, the slower it becomes."
Luo Chen pressed his lips together as understanding slowly dawned on him. Strictly speaking, this was not a place the Flesh Ganoderma should have been able to enter. Like the Wood King, Elder Duskvine Crow, and the various exotic beasts and elemental sprites scattered throughout the Heaven of the Five Elements, the Flesh Ganoderma was one of the guardians left behind by Heaven Refiner. Such beings were bound to their respective domains and confined within the world's established boundaries. Meanwhile, this region had clearly separated itself from the Heaven of the Five Elements, and by all rights, it should have been beyond the Flesh Ganoderma's reach. Though Luo Chen did not know what technique it had used to come here in the very first place, the restrictions governing this place had clearly not vanished. Even the fragment of will inhabiting Ding Yi's body could not escape it.
The three figures trudged across the desolate plain, their footsteps sinking unevenly into the ground, stopping from time to time to rest and observe their surroundings. On one such occasion, they halted once more and stared at the countless craters scattered across the earth, along with several mangled corpses and skeletal remains. Their expressions grew grave.
"This is the last stretch before the inheritance grounds. The spirit energy here is thin, but at least it isn't as harsh as the Heaven of the Five Elements. No matter what path you guys cultivate, people can fight here without being heavily restrained. Hmmm... judging by the signs, quite a few people must have reached this place and clashed before moving on."
"Oh..." Devil's Cloud chuckled softly as he listened to the Flesh Ganoderma. "Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing to arrive a year later. At least we managed to avoid the worst of the fighting."
The Flesh Ganoderma grunted in agreement.
Luo Chen, however, caught another detail in its words. "Where exactly are these inheritance grounds?"
The Flesh Ganoderma glanced at Luo Chen before raising a finger and pointing toward the colossal vortex. "Right there."
***
Ten days later, the three of them stood at the edge of a cliff, swaying slightly under the pressure of the raging winds. Above them roared a colossal vortex of spirit energy, while beneath their feet stretched a pitch-black abyss whose depths could not be seen.
The Flesh Ganoderma gazed downward with reverence in its eyes and shouted, "It's down there! My main body is trapped below. Fellow Daoist Devil's Cloud, the inheritance grounds you're looking for are down there as well!"
The howling winds nearly drowned out its voice, forcing it to shout at the top of its lungs.
The moment Devil's Cloud heard those words, his eyes lit up. He instinctively stepped forward, eager to approach the cliff's edge, but Luo Chen quickly reached out and stopped him.
Under Devil's Cloud's puzzled gaze, Luo Chen turned toward the Flesh Ganoderma. "We've come this far already. Can't you at least tell us how to get into the inheritance grounds?"
He pointed toward the towering vortex. "Spirit energy is pouring into it at an absurd speed. No ordinary cultivator could survive going in there. Don't tell me the entrance is actually inside that thing."
The Flesh Ganoderma snorted. "It's not that I can't tell you, but you have to free me first. That was our agreement from the start. We've come all this way, so don't expect me to hand over the reward before I've been paid."
Having said its piece, it ignored whatever objections the two might have had and sat down cross-legged at the edge of the cliff. Its hands moved rapidly through a series of seals. As the final seal formed, countless ganodermas suddenly emerged from the barren wasteland behind them and drifted through the air, while strands of green moss slowly emerged from the depths of the abyss and joined together to form a path. The aura emanating from the ganodermas and moss was identical to that of the Flesh Ganoderma. They seemed less like separate organisms and more like extensions of its own body.
Only after the path had fully taken shape did the Flesh Ganoderma rise to its feet and step onto the moss-covered trail. "Come. Follow me."
Devil's Cloud hesitated briefly, but the temptation of the inheritance grounds ultimately proved too great. Without further questions, he stepped onto the path and followed. Luo Chen glanced once more at the towering vortex, took a deep breath, and followed as well.
***
The abyss was shrouded in darkness, with barely a trace of daylight reaching its depths. The deeper they descended, the stronger the oppressive sensation became, as though the very air threatened to suffocate them.
This was the Fallen Devil Abyss.
It marked the boundary between the Heaven of the Five Elements and the Heaven of Bright Illumination. And somewhere within these depths, the Flesh Ganoderma's main body remained imprisoned.
After roughly half a day of travel, the trio finally stopped before a narrow crevice in the cliff face. With fear and excitement in equal measure, the Flesh Ganoderma stepped inside.
Luo Chen followed close behind. The passage was extremely cramped at first, barely wide enough for a single person to squeeze through. After several dozen steps, however, the tunnel gradually widened, and a faint glow appeared ahead.
The moment Luo Chen emerged from the passage, his eyes widened. Hidden within the abyss was an enormous cavern. At its center floated a giant sphere roughly the height of a person. It was pale, smooth, and strangely perfect. At first glance, it resembled a massive block of ice. Even the crimson strands running through it like veins could be seen clearly. If Luo Chen had to compare it to something, it looked almost like an enormous mass of jelly!
Surrounding the giant sphere were clusters of ganodermas in white, red, green, and countless other shades.
The Flesh Ganoderma let out an almost sickly moan. "M-My body!"
As it spoke, the giant sphere seemed to sense its presence and trembled slightly. At that very moment, formation patterns gradually emerged throughout the cavern, transforming into countless hooks that latched onto the sphere from every direction. Golden light flashed across the surface of the sphere, and one illusory nail after another materialized atop it.
A total of seven rust-covered phantom nails pinned the giant sphere firmly in place. Looking at those hooks and nails, the Flesh Ganoderma occupying Ding Yi's body immediately crouched down and clutched its head with both hands, unable to conceal the agony on its face. "Soul Hooks and Spirit Nails! Monarch, how could you be this cruel? I served you for years! Time and again, I let you draw on my life force to experiment with spirit herbs. After your death, I only wanted to take a look at the inheritance grounds, yet you treated me like this. I won't accept it! I refuse!"
The words came out broken, filled with resentment and despair. Even Luo Chen and Devil's Cloud instinctively retreated several steps.
The Flesh Ganoderma remained crouched there for a long while, letting out several low, pained cries before finally forcing itself back to its feet. "My apologies. That was rather embarrassing."
It spoke with an expression that seemed halfway between laughter and tears. Ignoring their reactions, it began circling around its body.
As it walked, it explained, "I am one of the three sprites of Hundred-Crow Ghost Forest. Together with Wood King and Elder Duskvine Crow, I guarded the Wood Heaven Plains for my entire life. The thing is... Well, as you can see, I am a Flesh Ganoderma. We have immense vitality and exceptionally long lives. Because of that, the Law of Wood has always been especially strong within me; in that respect, I am even superior to Wood King. Because of that, Heaven Refiner often took me throughout the Heaven of the Five Elements to cultivate spirit herbs, experiment with newly created sprites, and extend the lives of sprites that he had created but which possessed innate flaws. That's also why I know the sprites of this place so well.
"After the Monarch died, this place was left without a master. For the next thousand years, cultivators from the devil sect came and went. At first, they were only exploring, but they soon started harvesting the resources here as well. I knew that if things continued like that, the Land of Fallen Devils would eventually become the devil sect's private garden. Even fifth-tier sprites like us would end up under their control. As for me... I'd probably end up living the same life I had under the Monarch all over again.
"I couldn't accept that. So I started entertaining thoughts I never should have entertained. In the end, I came alone to the Fallen Devil Abyss and tried to leave this place through the Heaven of Bright Illumination..."
Luo Chen's brow arched. He was both astonished by the Flesh Ganoderma's experiences and skeptical of its account. For instance, leaving this pocket world through the Heaven of Bright Illumination could hardly be as simple as it claimed. And if the inheritance hidden there truly offered a path to a higher realm, was it really possible that the Flesh Ganoderma had felt no temptation whatsoever?
Luo Chen did not believe that for a moment. Still, he kept those doubts to himself and allowed the Flesh Ganoderma to continue.
"What I never expected was that the Monarch had long ago made preparations against sprite servants like us. The moment I attempted to enter the Heaven of Bright Illumination, this Grand Formation of Soul Hooks and Spirit Nails activated, trapping me inside. The formation is vicious beyond belief. It uses my own power against me. Unless I die completely, it will never dissipate."
At this point, the hatred on the Flesh Ganoderma's face suddenly vanished. In its place appeared a mixture of pride and relief. "But at one point, I saw someone from the devil sect do something interesting, and I had a flash of inspiration. That's how I came up with a way to escape with my will."
It pointed first at the scattered ganodermas throughout the cavern, then at the moss-covered path they had used to enter, and finally at Ding Yi's body. "This formation feeds on my power. As long as I keep splitting off pieces of myself, it gradually grows weaker. And if I can move my main soul into another body, the formation will lose its source and collapse on its own. Once that happens, I can reclaim my original body, reunite the two, and finally leave this place."
As it spoke, it turned toward Luo Chen and Devil's Cloud with unconcealed excitement. "And that's where the two of you come in. Are you ready?"
Luo Chen and Devil's Cloud exchanged a glance before slowly nodding.
"We'll follow your lead."
"We'll cooperate."
Receiving their answer, the Flesh Ganoderma clapped its hands together. "Great!"
***
The dim cavern soon became a scene of constant activity. Formation flags and formation discs were laid down one after another. Individual formations linked together into a larger structure, each supporting the next as their combined power continued to rise. Clearly, the Flesh Ganoderma had been preparing for this for a long time; it had plenty of things in reserve and all of them targeted some aspect of the formation that kept it imprisoned. To Devil's Cloud's astonishment, the Flesh Ganoderma even produced a few supreme-grade spirit stones and embedded them into the formations!
Luo Chen's responsibilities were no lighter. He was tasked with constructing a fourth-tier formation known as the Spirit Obstruction Formation. At the crucial moment, it would prevent Heaven Refiner's formation from affecting the Flesh Ganoderma's avatar. And to ensure nothing went wrong, the Flesh Ganoderma handed him the complete formation diagram and had him study it while assembling the formation itself. Overall, the work was not particularly complicated, but it demanded absolute precision.
Beyond that, Luo Chen also had to familiarize himself with some of the formations Devil's Cloud was responsible for so that he could take over and maintain them whenever Devil's Cloud could no longer sustain the burden alone.
Under such relentless preparations, time slipped away unnoticed; because the abyss never saw the light of day, it was almost impossible to judge the passage of time. By Luo Chen's rough estimate, nearly half a year had passed before everything was completed and everything was finally in place.
On the day they were ready to begin, Luo Chen carefully threaded his way through the maze of formations that now filled the cavern and stopped before the Flesh Ganoderma's main body. Turning around, he looked toward the Flesh Ganoderma inhabiting Ding Yi's body, seated about a zhang away from the main body.
The Flesh Ganoderma asked, "Are you ready?"
Luo Chen nodded and sat down before the enormous translucent sphere. "I'm ready."
"Fellow Daoist Devil's Cloud, what about your side?" the Flesh Ganoderma asked again.
Near the narrow crevice, Devil's Cloud slowly rose to his feet. He had spent some time resting and putting himself back together, so his aura was now at its peak. "Everything is ready. We can start at any time."
After receiving their answers, the Flesh Ganoderma took a deep breath and slowly swept its gaze across the two of them. "Then I'll be counting on both of you."
With that, it closed its eyes. The temporary formation altar beneath its feet began to glow, while throughout the cavern, streams of multicolored light erupted simultaneously under Devil's Cloud's control.
Buzzzz...
A muffled vibration rolled through the cavern as the formations activated. Dirt and sand rained from above as though the ceiling was about to collapse. But before the tremors could worsen, strands of moss shot across the walls and sealed the cracks, while the surrounding ganodermas rapidly swelled into massive pillars that braced the cavern's ceiling from below.
With that, the shaking gradually subsided. The three figures remained motionless in their positions, while only the Flesh Ganoderma's main body showed any change. Suspended at the center of the cavern, the giant translucent sphere trembled continuously, its pale flesh quivering as the formation's power flowed into it.