Chapter 1300: Withered Origin Pill

‘Whoosh!’

A figure darted over; it was none other than Old Freak Feng, who had sensed the anomaly. Old Freak Feng’s escape speed was incredibly fast, and he rapidly approached.

At this moment, his appearance had drastically changed; he no longer resembled a human. With eagle wings, snake scales, deer antlers, and a leopard tail, his facial features, though still present, were distorted and quite horrifying.

Upon seeing Old Freak Feng's terrifying appearance, many cultivators turned pale with fright, their hearts filled with dread, unsure if Old Freak Feng was human or demonic. Little did they know, this was a Fusion Secret Art practiced by Old Freak Feng. From the beginning of his cultivation, he had to integrate parts of demonic beasts' bodies into his own, refining them into a demonic physique. As his cultivation advanced and he reached the Nascent Soul stage, the demonic bodies integrated within him also transformed, making his demonic physique even more powerful. His real name was Feng Xuegan, and it was precisely because of this secret art that he earned the moniker 'Old Freak'.

Transformed into his demonic physique, Old Freak Feng emanated an unnatural ferocity. His eyes were fierce, radiating an astonishing killing intent as he stared intently at Qu Huan.

"Old Freak Feng's demonic physique is becoming stranger and stranger. While powerful, it's likely that integrating too many disparate parts into his body has prevented his cultivation from progressing for years. No wonder he consumed so many Withering Essence Pills; unfortunately, he'll have to pay for it all." Qu Huan watched the approaching Old Freak Feng, chuckling softly with a sarcastic tone.

Even though he was about to be surrounded by two Nascent Soul experts, he showed no fear, his expression one of complete self-assurance.

A flicker of suspicion crossed the eyes of the cultivator surnamed Qi. After gazing at Qu Huan for a moment, he inwardly cried 'Not good' and suddenly raised his hand, unleashing a claw shadow. The claw shadow, without hesitation, lunged towards Qu Huan. Where it passed, the air twisted, emitting a scorching aura. It glowed fiery red, as if molten lava flowed within. A searing gale swept forth.

Qu Huan dared not directly confront the claw shadow and swiftly retreated. Just then, Old Freak Feng, who had been rapidly approaching, vanished into thin air. The next moment, he suddenly reappeared behind Qu Huan, raising his two claws—which seemed to be fused with an unknown demonic beast—and brutally plunged them into Qu Huan's body!

'Rip!'

The sharp claws brutally tore out a spine. Qu Huan's eyes became vacant, his body stiffened, and he was instantly torn to shreds by Old Freak Feng. In an instant, fragmented flesh and broken bones flew everywhere.

It seemed Qu Huan wouldn't survive. However, Old Freak Feng and the cultivator surnamed Qi did not rejoice; instead, they grew angry.

"Hmph!" Old Freak Feng opened his mouth and spat out a cloud of dark light, sweeping away Qu Huan's remains and the formless poison in the air. His demonic body leaped, agile as a leopard, landing on the city wall and staring at the Lotus Array. Just then, figures descended from the sky, landing around them. They were the other Nascent Soul cultivators who had gone and returned. They had lost track of Old Devil Ye. True Master Cang Hong, Fairy Qiu Zhi, and others still had the ability to pursue, but the rest had to return. Like Old Freak Feng, they had found nothing and failed to corner Qu Huan's true body.

"Calamity is at hand, yet you're still scheming against each other, a bunch of suicidal fools!" Qu Huan's wild laughter echoed from outside the city. It turned out that Qu Huan had prepared an escape route before making his move. When his ambush on the cultivator surnamed Qi failed, he had a bad feeling and decisively fled from Yu City. Fortunately, he reacted quickly; had he been a moment slower, he would have been surrounded by the Nascent Souls, and no matter his abilities, he wouldn't have been able to escape.

Qu Huan continued to gloat loudly.

"Kill him!" Everyone was enraged, and several immediately pursued him out of the city, including Old Freak Feng. Qu Huan knew too many secrets of the Sinister Abyss; if the Alliance of Two Domains learned all the inside information from him, they would be at a significant disadvantage. The cultivator surnamed Qi was even more mortified and exasperated. Old Devil Ye's betrayal and mass killings had caused the situation to rapidly deteriorate, marking the most critical moment for the Sinister Abyss. Under such circumstances, no internal traitors could be tolerated. They had employed a small scheme, unexpectedly drawing out a high-ranking internal traitor, but the traitor managed to escape.

"The man surnamed Qu has been lurking for so long and achieved so much, which speaks to his cunning. It won't be easy to stop him. However, managing to expose the traitor is already a success. Fellow Daoist Qi, there's no need to be disheartened. Quickly deploy defenses for the city and stabilize morale. If we work together, we will surely overcome this difficulty!" A beautiful female cultivator stepped forward, speaking softly to comfort the cultivator surnamed Qi.

The cultivator surnamed Qi nodded, his expression returning to calm, and asked in return, "True Master and Fairy Qiu Zhi haven't returned? You didn't catch Old Devil Ye?"

The female cultivator's expression dimmed, and she sighed, "Even though Old Devil Ye was severely wounded, his escape speed still far surpassed ours; we were quickly left behind. Furthermore, the backlash for several fellow Daoists became increasingly severe and difficult to suppress. Fearing Old Devil Ye might take advantage, True Master ordered us to return while they continued the pursuit." As she spoke, the female cultivator's gaze shifted, motioning towards the Nascent Soul cultivators meditating nearby. Among them, a handsome young man was most conspicuous. His dark hair and beard were visibly turning gray, wrinkles slowly appeared on his face, and his skin lost its luster; in just this short time, he seemed to have aged decades. During this process, his aura fluctuated erratically, and his vital essence, energy, and spirit were all weakening. Their condition was somewhat similar to Old Freak Feng's earlier, though the severity varied. Even though he had witnessed Old Freak Feng's backlash process before, seeing a similar sight still made the cultivator surnamed Qi's hair stand on end. He felt fortunate that he had not taken a Withering Essence Pill.

"Where exactly is Old Devil Ye trying to escape to?" The cultivator surnamed Qi composed himself and continued to press.

"Before we returned, we saw Old Devil Ye fly into the Heavenly Scar. Unless something unexpected happens, his target should be the Abyssal Ruins," the female cultivator said gravely.

"Could he..." A thought struck the cultivator surnamed Qi, and his face filled with shock, "He can open the Sin God Palace?" Since its discovery, the Sin God Palace had always remained synchronized with the Ziwei Palace. It was certain that it wasn't time for the Ziwei Palace to emerge yet, unless Old Devil Ye forcibly opened the Sin God Palace.

"The entire cause of this began with Old Devil Ye and True Master, along with others, working together to kill a demon in the Sin God Palace. Although we can't guess how Old Devil Ye accomplished it or what his intentions are, everything he has done is certainly related to the Sin God Palace. His understanding of the Sin God Palace surpasses everyone else's." The female cultivator seemed to recall something, a hint of regret flashing in her eyes. "Old Devil Ye, severely wounded and having committed such atrocities, could only hope to survive by escaping into the Sin God Palace. The fact that he dared to do this means he must have been planning it for a long time, confident in his escape. It's a pity we were all blinded for so many years, completely unaware." From her words, it was clear the female cultivator didn't believe True Master Cang Hong could stop Old Devil Ye.

Noticing the female cultivator's unusual demeanor, the cultivator surnamed Qi comforted her, "These are just our conjectures. Old Devil Ye might not have such immense power. True Master will soon send back news. Defending Yu City is the most crucial matter right now."

At the same time, Qin Sang and the others were charging through the grand formation. In the Lotus Array, each lotus petal represented a layer of restriction; to enter Yu City, one had to break through layer after layer of these restrictions. At this moment, they had realized Yu City was vulnerable, presenting a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. No longer holding back, they unleashed their full capabilities and, in a short time, broke through half of the restrictions.