Chapter 903: Human-Shaped Black Hole

It was the season when maple leaves were just beginning to turn red, and the daytime in Blade Harbor was still relatively warm.

Fortunately, the Anti-Evil Pill had already taken effect. Though their hands and feet felt cold while circulating their vital energy, they weren't overcome by external forces. The gray mists swirled around them, specifically targeting their mouths, noses, eyes, and ears, as if with ill intent.

"Even the malevolent energy on the sea is so dense," Lingguang said worriedly, "I'm afraid we won't be able to get onto the island easily."

Dragon Ridge Island was the true source of the ley line, and Lingguang feared the Anti-Evil Pill's effects wouldn't be sufficient. After all, the pill's efficacy had its limits.

Before He Lingchuan could speak, the divine bone necklace around his neck suddenly grew warm. This artifact had been dormant for so long that he couldn't even remember when it had last reacted. The next moment, the hole in the center of the pendant began to absorb the mist.

To the eighteen eyes of his four companions, the gray mist suddenly surged madly towards He Lingchuan, as if something was driving it from behind, and then—

It vanished.

Young Master He was like a human black hole; any gray mist that approached him simply disappeared without a trace. Even Granny Zhu, an ancient demon accustomed to countless strange occurrences, was greatly astonished. "What's going on?" she wondered.

He Lingchuan raised his left wrist, opening and closing his fingers. Although his entire body was enveloped by the thick mist, he felt no discomfort; the mist was absorbed by the divine bone necklace before it even touched him. The divine bone reacted as if it had just woken up, taking a deep breath. But outsiders couldn't discern the mist's true destination; they only saw it vanish upon approaching him.

"Squeak, this isn't good!" Lingguang exclaimed, quickly grabbing He Lingchuan's wrist. He was worried the gray mist might have afflicted him. Malevolent turbid energy invading the body, especially at this concentration and magnitude, was no laughing matter! Lingguang had heard that corpses buried in places of malevolent energy could eventually turn into zombies. And that was merely a place of malevolent energy, not a ley line itself!

Several methods for expelling malevolent energy had already crossed Lingguang's mind, but first and foremost, his master had to be isolated from it! Fearing Lingguang would suddenly stuff a bunch of pills into his mouth, He Lingchuan gently pulled his hand free from its grasp. "It's fine," he said, "the malevolent energy won't harm me."

Lingguang had already felt his pulse and indeed found no abnormality; his pulse was steady and strong, with no signs of malevolent energy invading his body. Although Lingguang didn't quite understand, it felt a sense of relief.

Everyone instinctively stepped back a couple of paces, unwilling to be touched by the gray mist. They watched as the malevolent turbid energy wildly surged towards He Lingchuan, who remained completely unperturbed. The stark contrast was striking, and the scene was somewhat unsettling. All who witnessed it were astonished. Even the terrestrial malevolent energy seemed powerless against him, making He Lingchuan appear even more profound and unfathomable to his subordinates.

Tao Ran asked directly, "My lord, are you alright?"

"I'm perfectly fine," He Lingchuan replied with a hearty laugh, his mood greatly lifted. "Just as I expected!" The others didn't understand the reason, but seeing his confident demeanor, they felt reassured. Young Master He could even collect the malevolent turbid energy from the ley line; whatever method he used, it was incredibly impressive.

Granny Zhu, however, remained quite calm. Having caused a ruckus in the Heavenly Palace with He Lingchuan and then leaving Mount Xu alongside him, she was well aware of his extraordinary feats. To her, any strange occurrence involving him seemed commonplace.

He Lingchuan had hurried to the Yangshan Archipelago precisely to test an idea he had in mind. When Lu Xun described the Yangshan Archipelago to him, the mention of "terrestrial malevolence" immediately brought to He Lingchuan's mind the Coiled Dragon Desert and the former lands of the Yuan Kingdom. The destruction of the Coiled Dragon Desert, which resulted in millions of deaths among soldiers and civilians, had led to over a century of severe sandstorms caused by the malevolent energy. The former lands of the Yuan Kingdom were even worse; the terrestrial malevolence in Thousand Star City was so intense that even Taozi, the "Terrestrial Malevolence Child," was further transformed into a small monster—a drought demon.

However, after He Lingchuan arrived in Lingxu City, he learned from Fushanyue that the terrestrial malevolence in Thousand Star City had greatly diminished, and vegetation had begun to grow. Why had such a change suddenly occurred in a place that had been an extreme locale of terrestrial malevolence for nearly two hundred years? It wasn't He Lingchuan's vanity, but as he pondered, he wondered if the change might be related to himself. Could the Grand Square Flask be responsible? He didn't mind verifying it, which was why he had questioned Lu Xun, his original body's ancestor, in such extraordinary detail.

At this moment, a heavy weight was finally lifted from his mind: The Grand Square Flask not only needed malevolent energy, but it consumed it voraciously, displaying extreme greed! Was this harmful substance actually beneficial to it?

In an instant, all the gray mist within a twenty-li (approximately 10-kilometer) radius was sucked dry, with astonishing efficiency, and the visibility ahead became clear once more. The small boat gradually moved towards the source of the gray mist, which was Dragon Ridge Island. All along the way, the human-shaped Young Master—no, the human-shaped black hole—was passively clearing the path. The others' gazes at him were now knowing. Young Master He must have been wearing some kind of treasure that could absorb malevolent energy. He wouldn't say what it was, and since it was his privacy, no one would proactively ask. But this treasure... its effect was remarkably powerful.

The clouds in the sky parted again, and sunlight once more illuminated the sea. The gray mists instantly vanished under the sun's rays. Seeing this, everyone also roughly understood that malevolent energy couldn't stand sunlight. However, during the day, gray mists still lurked in the shadows of the island's mountains, escaping when the sky was overcast. They moved faster than boats, and once sunlight disappeared, travelers at sea would still be affected. This was why neither merchant ships nor pirates dared to approach this area. And night was the malevolent energy's main territory, which explained why the boatman had instructed Tao Ran to quickly find a place to dock and go ashore at nightfall.

When they docked their boat and landed on the island, they turned back to see clear skies, bright scenery, and golden ripples on the water—a scene of infinite beauty. Who could have imagined that this very route had been a chaotic battlefield for sea vessels mere moments ago?

The group followed the winding mountain slope and ascended Dragon Ridge Island. Mugwort and reeds stood at least a zhang (approximately 3.3 meters) tall, and fallen, tall plants were everywhere.

Tao Ran suddenly remarked, "Hardly anyone comes to this place. How can there be a ready-made path?"

There was a path on the ground, about three chi (approximately 1 meter) wide, just wide enough for one person to pass. The simple existence of a path here was unsettling. Given the vigorous plant growth on Dragon Ridge Island, if such a path weren't walked on for a month, it would have been overgrown by vegetation long ago. How could there be living people on an island permeated with malevolent energy?

"This is an animal trail; the grass has been flattened," Qiu Hu said, squatting down for a closer look. "There's a light gray viscous substance on the grass blades by the path, and the smell—" He deliberately sniffed it, immediately felt nauseous, and quickly covered his nose. "Salty and fishy!"

Lingguang also jumped down to look. "If you hadn't taken the Anti-Evil Pill," he said, "you'd be vomiting uncontrollably right now."

He Lingchuan stroked his chin. "I heard there are still living creatures on this island called Shadow Vipers," he mused. "Perhaps they made this path."

Lingguang worried, "These monsters are constantly immersed in malevolent energy. If one bites you, I'm afraid it would be difficult to treat."

Tao Ran looked up at the sky. "It's still early before sunset," he said. "We're relatively safe for now."

He Lingchuan led the way. "Let's go," he said, "just stay vigilant." He observed the terrain as he walked. The cliff was on the other side of the island; from the beach where their boat landed to the hillside, the slope wasn't steep, making it easy to walk.