Chapter 1345 - 1340: Grizzly Bear
"The spirit of heaven and earth, granted by the Hongmeng Supreme, defies the yin and yang of the world, harnesses the cycle of the seasons, cultivates the righteousness of the heavens and earth..." At this moment, a heavy, ancient voice echoed through the purple space, and Lin Chuan saw a mass of deep purple spiritual energy descend from the sky, heading towards him.
"No!" Just then, a green-clad woman noticed and became panicked. She flew towards Lin Chuan with desperation.
"This is mine," the green-clad woman growled, transforming into a green light as she charged at Lin Chuan.
"You shameless demon, even dare to covet the spiritual energy of heaven and earth," the heavy voice roared, as a purple glow shot toward the green-clad woman.
"Ah!" A scream echoed, and the silhouette of the green-clad woman halted.
Lin Chuan opened his eyes and saw that the green-clad woman's form was no longer visible within the purple glow; instead, it was a giant snake, the very green serpent he had seen earlier in the lake.
"So, this is her true form, a beast in transformation—indeed strong enough!" Lin Chuan thought to himself. At this moment, the purple glow above his head had entered his body.
"Ah... Spare me, my lord. This little demon was wrong and will never dare again!" The green-clad woman's pitiful cries reached Lin Chuan, but he furrowed his brows.
Yet, at this moment, the Hongmeng Qi within him began to spread, and this purple glow energy slowly merged with his True Qi. Soon, a powerful surge of True Qi manifested within his body. Lin Chuan could sense that the purple glow energy was merging with his Inner Qi immediately.
Unexpectedly, the Yin Yang Jade contained such secrets, and this purple glow energy is likely the seal left by Laozi, the Taoist ancestor.
The True Qi inside Lin Chuan was flowing turbulently; much of the purple glow energy had already merged with his True Qi.
The purple glow True Qi was transforming his body, he felt his True Qi swelling instantly, then dissipating.
Time passed little by little, and not long after, the purple glow enveloping Lin Chuan disappeared as well. Lin Chuan sat cross-legged on the ground, and the sky blue True Qi formed from the merger within him seeped into his limbs and bones.
Lin Chuan opened his eyes, slowly stood up, and a sharp light flickered in his gaze!
"You may leave now. I hope you'll cultivate peacefully from now on and not bring harm to the world." Looking at the snake-transformed green-clad woman, Lin Chuan said.
The green-clad woman—or rather, the snake demon—nodded at Lin Chuan and spoke human words: "Thank you for sparing my life; I will repay you in the future."
How unexpected for Lin Chuan, that Xiao Ling was the descendant of this snake demon; Xiao Ling had helped Lin Chuan a lot, indirectly repaying Lin Chuan on behalf of her ancestor.
Regaining consciousness, the snake demon leaped into the lake surface and vanished.
Mu Xing and Murong Xue were stunned, watching this unfold, unable to believe their eyes.
Judging by Lin Chuan's expression, his cultivation seemed much higher than before.
Mu Xing seemed to be a pragmatic person, realizing that staying here longer would not end well. He gave Murong Xue a knowing look and whispered, "Let's go."
Murong Xue glanced at Lin Chuan with a guilt-filled gaze, bit her silver tooth, and followed Mu Xing as they swiftly departed.
Mu Qiu and Luo Feng saw Lin Chuan was alright and shouted joyously, but upon seeing Mu Xing and Murong Xue preparing to flee, they intended to intercept them.
"Forget it, let them go. Let's quickly retrieve the Nine Revolutions Thousand Spirit Fruit," Lin Chuan said to Mu Qiu and Luo Feng.
The two paused and did not pursue further. The three retrieved the Nine Revolutions Thousand Spirit Fruit and swiftly returned from the mountainside, yet the others were nowhere to be seen.
Nearly a thousand people had followed Lin Chuan here; Mu Qiu, Luo Feng, and the rest hadn't been gone long, so why had they suddenly vanished?
The three stared at each other, speechless.
"It seems they've been captured by the Ghost Gate. Mu Qiu, Luo Feng, stay here and protect yourselves. I'll go rescue them." Moments later, Lin Chuan spoke to them.
"Brother Lin, we'll go with you," Mu Qiu and Luo Feng said in unison.
Lin Chuan shook his head and said, "The Ghost Gate must have many experts to capture nearly a thousand people in such a short time. It's best if you wait here for me."
Thinking it over, Mu Qiu and Luo Feng agreed that if they went with Lin Chuan, he might have to worry about them, so they did not insist.
Lin Chuan lightly tapped his feet, and his figure disappeared in a flash. Mu Qiu and Luo Feng only saw a blur as Lin Chuan vanished.
Lin Chuan, like a ghost, reached the outskirts of the Ghost Gate within minutes—a vast, open area with many towering buildings in the distance.
Not far away, two guys were chatting and laughing, appearing to be perimeter guards.
Lin Chuan's body did not pause, instantly arriving in front of the two guards, twisting his body, quickly striking a palm towards them.
With Lin Chuan's current strength, dealing with two guards was a piece of cake.
Lin Chuan didn't strike too heavily, merely knocking the two guards unconscious.
Grabbing one of the guards, Lin Chuan woke him up and asked coldly, "Where are the hundreds of people you captured now?"
The guard, a coward fearing for his life, quickly spilled everything. According to him, Zhang Wenhui, Zheng Xiuzhi, Shangguan Mingyue, and the others were all detained at Thunder Stone Gorge.
After finding out the location of Thunder Stone Gorge, Lin Chuan killed the two guards right away. If he didn't, it would be a huge problem if they woke up and went to report.
Following the direction pointed out by the guard, Lin Chuan quickly reached a forested area.
Lin Chuan extended his senses, carefully observing everything within the forest, yet even after a while, he didn't find anything unusual.
By now, Lin Chuan had reached the depths of the forest. Once he crossed this forest, he would arrive at Ghost Gate's prisoner holding site, Thunder Stone Gorge.
As Lin Chuan dashed through the forest, light blue True Qi swirled around his body. Suddenly, he heard a faint tremor ahead, followed by an earth-shattering roar.
The sound was sharp, sending a chill down one's spine.
Lin Chuan's eyes narrowed as he stopped his movement. As soon as he halted, several gray figures appeared in front of him.
Focusing his gaze, Lin Chuan saw three beast-like creatures resembling bears. However, they stood upright, possessing not only fierce teeth but also sharp claws. Their bodies were not only covered with fur but also some scales.
"It seems Ghost Gate's defenses here are indeed formidable; even these beasts look quite intimidating," Lin Chuan thought to himself.
The three beasts across roared, baring their vicious fangs, then lunged towards Lin Chuan savagely.
Lin Chuan's expression was grim as the three gray bears charged at him from different directions, seemingly trying to quickly overpower him with a group attack.
The lead gray bear's silhouette flickered, lunging fiercely at Lin Chuan. Lin Chuan slightly sidestepped to his left, delivering a powerful double punch.
Bam...
With a muffled bang and a flash of blue light, Lin Chuan struck the gray bear's abdomen heavily. Instantly, the bear was sent flying and thudded to the ground.
Lin Chuan furrowed his brows, realizing that his previous punch felt like hitting a stone. Although he sent the gray bear flying, the recoil was not light.
Swiftly shaking his hands, Lin Chuan's expression turned serious again as the remaining two gray bears charged from the left and right.
Who would have thought the previous bear was merely a distraction for the other two. Lin Chuan quickly moved, rapidly circulating True Qi within, displaying his full cultivation prowess.
Lin Chuan crossed his arms, leaving two afterimages in the air. As the two gray bears came close, he spun swiftly, delivering strikes left and right.
Two muffled sounds echoed through the forest, then the sky-blue True Qi pulsed violently, stirring up dust from the ground.
As this wave rippled, loud echoes spread through the forest. After a dozen breaths, the dust settled. Lin Chuan glanced over and saw two bloody figures lying motionless on the ground — the two gray bears from earlier.
They were as dead as could be, and the gray bear Lin Chuan had previously sent flying looked at him with fear in its eyes before turning to flee.
"Where are you running?" Lin Chuan smirked coldly, then dashed forward, pressing a palm down towards the gray bear ahead.
A flash of black light struck the bear heavily.
Dust surged, and the forest floor trembled. Once the dust cleared, only pieces of flesh remained of the gray bear's body. Witnessing this, Lin Chuan's eyes gleamed.
Though called a gorge, it's more like a massive ravine, as Thunder Stone Gorge lies beneath two towering peaks from above.
But from below, it seems like another world. The air is humid, the grasslands stretch endlessly, with occasional vast ponds and giant vines. There are cliffs and stone caves, making it a complete contrast to the previous Thunder Desolate Mountain.
Lin Chuan chose a spot to sit and calmed down, easing the fatigue from his earlier rushed journey.
Unexpectedly, beneath this Thunder Stone Gorge, one can still see the sunrise and sunset. The surroundings are so picturesque that even Lin Chuan couldn't help but take a few more glances.
"There are nearly a thousand people captured at Thunder Stone Gorge; I wonder where they are being held," Lin Chuan murmured.
Lin Chuan moved forward; having just entered Thunder Stone Gorge, his speed was swift, heading straight ahead.
He walked through the lush trees for most of the day and found nothing, not a trace of human presence, not even a shadow of a beast.
Lin Chuan continued walking at a steady pace. Ahead was a cluster of lush lotus flowers. In the early morning, crystalline dew dripped onto the lotus leaves. From afar, that lotus pond seemed as if from a fairyland.