Chapter 778 - 346
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A sense of something ominous emerged from Xu Guang’s heart; there is sure to be the inheritance of a Refining Pattern Master in this mountain cave.
He gripped the bronze Long Sword tightly, swallowed a few restorative Elixirs, and cautiously walked towards the cave entrance.
The rubble at the entrance showed signs of having been moved, but the traces were old, covered with a thin layer of dust.
It seemed like long ago someone used a sealing stone to block the entrance, hiding within the cave.
Xu Guang carefully probed with his Divine Thought, confirming there were no traps or lingering Forbidden Techniques, then hunched down and entered the cave.
Initially, the cave was narrow, allowing only one person to pass. The rock walls were damp, cold, and slippery to the touch, starkly different from the scorching heat outside the Fire Domain.
After advancing about a dozen zhang, the passage suddenly widened into a naturally-formed grotto.
The grotto wasn’t big, only about thirty zhang in diameter, and from the ceiling, sporadically glowing stalactites provided faint illumination.
The sight in the grotto’s center caused Xu Guang’s pupils to contract sharply and his breath to catch.
A skeleton leaned against the stone platform in the grotto’s center.
The skeleton was pale gold all over, like sculpted Gold and Jade, enduring through eons without decay, still exuding a subtle awe.
It maintained a cross-legged posture, with its left hand on its knee, and the right hand stretched forward, with its index finger pointing to the ground.
The skeleton was cloaked in a tattered, charred, and ripped black robe, which looked quite similar to the black robe Chen Yue wore before.
Soul Ridge Saint.
Xu Guang thought in his heart.
The ground around the skeleton was inscribed with intricate and densely packed patterns.
The patterns spread from the skeleton outward, covering the whole grotto floor.
The patterns were infused with the Soul Refining Power unique to Soul Ridge; just a glance made one feel as though their Heart Spirit were sinking.
Although the Saint had fallen many years ago, the protective Array he left behind seemed to still hold its power.
Xu Guang frowned slightly.
For a moment, he was unsure what to do; if he approached now, would that magic array attack him?
Xu Guang walked in the valley, sensing his surroundings while slowly immersing his Heart Spirit with the Killing Tower.
This tower was his current reliance.
It harbored the residual Holy Power of the Thousand Kills Saint Monarch and could be activated around five times.
Finally, the monotonous environment before him transformed; countless demonic thoughts converged into a lake, jet-black like ink, resembling a Lake of Demonic Thoughts.
Xu Guang dared not proceed deeper; he sensed danger from the lake’s surface. The demonic coral he carried couldn’t absorb the demonic thoughts from the lake, as if it wasn’t solely made up of demonic thoughts, but blended with something even more terrifying.
He walked along the lake’s perimeter.
In the dense fog, Xu Guang took out a bronze Compass, with his position faintly flickering.
This Compass, obtained from Chen Yue, appeared ordinary but was a Semi-Saint artifact capable of perfectly locating some regions of chaotic destiny.
In the Fire Domain, its aid to Xu Guang was equivalent to a Holy Artifact.
"It seems the place where the Saint who brought out the Refining Pattern Master’s heritage isn’t far now."
In this valley, whether there were living people remained unknown; Xu Guang had walked at least a thousand li without discovering any signs left by living entities.
It was as if this place was entirely a dead land.
After walking tens of li along the black lake, Xu Guang stopped, staring silently at the bronze Compass in his hand.
This should be the place. It’s uncertain what form the residual thoughts of that Saint have taken and what Divine Techniques it possesses.
Thud... thud... thud...
A sound suddenly echoed.
It sounded like the heartbeat of some huge entity, akin to the beating of drums.
The crucial point wasn’t merely the sound itself but the location from where the sound seemed to emanate, from near to far.
Xu Guang instinctively looked down at his feet; there was nothing unusual.
Feeling a sense of anticipation, he slowly lifted his head.
The space before him suddenly collapsed, and a black giant maw filled with oppressive pressure emerged from the void.
Aimed at Xu Guang for a bite.
Xu Guang erupted with Power, soaring through the air, diagonally shooting towards the right.
In mid-flight, he finally saw the monster reveal its full form.
A bizarre-shaped creature was roaring in the mist.
Overall, it resembled the ancient tale’s centaur image but was imbued with an aura of sinister abnormality.
It had three heads, but the head positions weren’t all on the neck; instead, they were respectively located at the neck, chest, and tail, with the neck head resembling that of a bull, the chest head resembling a pig, and the tail head resembling a snake, replacing the tail, swaying gently behind.
The earlier attack on Xu Guang came from the tail-head.
Entirely black, the three heads differed, but their eye colors were uniformly white.
Thud!
Xu Guang tapped his toes on the ground for strength, narrowly dodging the sudden attack by the centaur’s snake-headed tail.
Three pairs of eyes, all ghastly white and pupil-less, simultaneously locked on Xu Guang.
"Roar—!"
The bull head first let out a deep thunderous howl, a wave of sound carrying tangible demonic impact, tearing open a fan-shaped gap in the surrounding mist.
Xu Guang felt a tremor in his Divine Soul; the demonic coral in his sea of consciousness spontaneously swayed, dark purple light circulating, dissipating most of the impact, though the residual shock still caused his blood and qi to stir slightly.
Almost concurrently with the bull head’s roar, the snake head moved!
Fast!
Faster than Xu Guang anticipated!
Despite the snake head’s previous sneak attack making Xu Guang aware that this head excelled in rapid ambushes, it was beyond his expectations that the speed would be so terrifying.
The snake neck merely flickered, the snake head piercing through a thirty zhang distance, opening a giant mouth full of densely packed reverse fangs, aiming for Xu Guang’s throat!