Chapter 492 - 245: Hundred Ghosts Melting Furnace
Chu Xiu never expected such good fortune to come his way.
The world that matched him perfectly was none other than the [Hundred Ghosts Melting Furnace]!
This world is named after a furnace because its main body is a massive, towering pit descending layer by layer, far larger than the calamity-parasitic pits in the Corpse Demon World!
If the calamity-parasitic pit, comparable to a city’s area, is already astonishing, then the [Hundred Ghosts Melting Furnace] world is like a continent!
Its uniqueness lies in how the entire world is filled with dense Yin Qi, which continually settles downwards; the deeper the pit, the denser the Yin Qi becomes! Such rich Yin Qi has birthed a multitude of ghosts, earning it the name [Hundred Ghosts Melting Furnace]!
"If my Thousand Souls Banner is to refine into a Ghost King, it must continuously melt a large number of ghosts! The myriad ghosts of this world couldn’t be more suitable!"
A pit comparable to the size of a continent—it’s hard to imagine how many living beings it harbors!
Of course, if it were just that, it wouldn’t be enough to excite Chu Xiu so much, since worlds dense in Yin Qi are not uncommon.
The special aspect of this world lies in its unique history.
It was discovered thirty years ago, during the period of dark turmoil.
And it wasn’t discovered through an Awakening Trial, but by a [Heroic Spirit] strongman, who detected this unknown world during a Free Deep Diving.
After entering this world, that strongman realized at once that the dense Yin Qi and ghosts covering the world were an enormous treasure trove!
This one world alone might suffice the cultivation needs of over ten thousand [Soul System] professions!
He didn’t hesitate, using up an extremely precious [Independent Anchor Point] to establish a connection with this world.
The [Independent Anchor Point] was one of the grand prizes Chu Xiu obtained after passing the Ancient Trials, capable of transforming into a [Core Anchor Point] upon usage in a world!
The value of this Artifact is incredibly high, essential for pioneering or expeditions to other worlds, usually only possibly owned by [Heroic Spirit] or even [Demigod] strong men under serendipitous circumstances.
In the ensuing years, that [Heroic Spirit] strongman made a fortune by continuously capturing ghosts and selling [Anchor Points].
However, there is a significant difference between worlds obtained through Free Deep Diving and those through Awakening Trials, in that these worlds might not be fully devoured by the Abyss.
Not being fully devoured means a civilization exists in this world!
Theoretically, the Blue Star also belongs to this type of world, meaning Awakened from other worlds might also reach Blue Star through [Free Deep Diving].
Indeed, the [Hundred Ghosts Melting Furnace] world harbors local natives; not only exist, they form a massive civilization of over a billion in population!
This civilization, capturing and utilizing ghosts in the pit for battle and development, calls itself the [Exorcist] civilization.
When the [Exorcist] civilization clashed with the Awakened, a life-and-death struggle between colonizers and native civilization naturally ensued.
The [Hundred Ghosts Melting Furnace] world is only a Level 5 world, meaning its highest tier existence is merely King Tier, naturally no match for the Awakened, and was defeated after defeat, with countless casualties.
It’s said that even the Conquering King was tempted, wishing to buy the Anchor Point from that [Heroic Spirit] and completely conquer that civilization into his domain.
However, in times of crisis, heroes always emerge.
Back then, the strongest member of the [Exorcist] civilization forcefully advanced to [Heroic Spirit] with the Power of Civilization, and set up a great array at the furnace’s bottom, launching a surprise attack that quashed all three [Heroic Spirits] of the Awakened camp in one strike!
Due to the death of the [Core Anchor Point] holder, the [Core Anchor Point] naturally shattered, the Awakened couldn’t replenish their numbers, and under the full pursuit of the [Exorcist] civilization, they had no choice but to flee back to the Blue Star, never daring to enter again.
Over time, the Blue Star completely lost control over this world.
The Conquering King felt some regret but didn’t pay much attention, as worlds in the Abyss are countless, and the [Hundred Ghosts Melting Furnace] was just an unremarkable one among them, although its world structure was very suitable for the development of [Soul System] professions, the Abyssal Level it was in was too shallow, the world grade only Level 5, not worth a Celestial King’s extra effort.
Everyone assumed the two worlds would never intersect again, just one of thousands of worlds where Awakened conquests failed, insignificant.
Yet what no one expected was that just a month and a half ago, during an Awakening Trial, the [Hundred Ghosts Melting Furnace] was chosen as the Trial World!
And only worlds where civilizations have vanished and been entirely devoured by the Abyss can become Trial Worlds!
This immediately drew the government’s attention, and after some investigation, the Investigation Bureau pieced together the order of events.
It turns out that while the strongest member of the [Exorcist] civilization might have killed three [Heroic Spirits], it was at the cost of burning his own life to do so.
Not just him, the hundreds of King Tier aiding the array’s operation also sacrificed their lives!
No choice, the gap between Heroic Spirit and King Tier was too vast, that strongest member had just advanced to [Heroic Spirit]; even with the array’s aid, how could he have competed against three seasoned [Heroic Spirits] who had begun [Free Deep Diving]?