Chapter 466: Gurgle Gurgle

On the River Styx, the long procession, resembling a wedding escort, continued to advance. The piercing sound of suona horns, like a death dirge, echoed incessantly.

On the sedan chair were four jars, colored blue, black, red, and white. They rested on the sedan poles, appearing to be offerings.

Xu Qing observed all this from the sky, a cold glint in his eyes. With a flicker, he began to stride towards the sedan chair.

His appearance immediately drew the attention of the escorting party. Seven or eight serpentine figures suddenly turned their heads, their malevolent intent directed straight at Xu Qing, rushing towards him.

Xu Qing's expression remained unchanged. He continued to advance, his gaze fixed solely on the sedan chair, everything else outside his notice.

With every step, the River Styx roared, and his aura sharpened like a blade.

The seven or eight soul figures rapidly approached, but the moment they drew near, a poisonous gust of wind swept through them. Instantly, their spiritual forms began to rot, and they shrieked in agony.

On the verge of dissipating, they eerily merged into a single colossal soul figure, over a zhang tall. It spread its arms, roaring, and lunged at Xu Qing.

With a resounding crash, the soul figure paused before Xu Qing, then cracks rapidly spread across its body. It uncontrollably disintegrated and exploded, countless shattered soul fragments turning to dust and scattering over the River Styx. Xu Qing emotionlessly retracted his fist and continued to rush forward. Just as he was about to reach the procession, the long escort party before him shattered and vanished like a bubble.

Further ahead, amidst a blur, the escorting party reappeared, continuing its journey without pause.

Only the curtain of the sedan chair was lifted by a hand like white jade. The maiden seated inside extended her long, serpentine neck, gazing coldly at Xu Qing.

This was the first non-insane figure Xu Qing had encountered since arriving, yet the maiden was clearly not entirely normal. Her expression seemed to hold only indifference. As she looked at Xu Qing, dozens of serpentine souls from her surrounding entourage radiated malevolence and charged towards him.

Xu Qing ignored the charging souls. He looked at the sedan chair, then raised his right hand to point at the sky.

Immediately, the sky roared, and a storm of poisonous mist descended, landing in front of the sedan chair to block its path.

Then he stamped his foot on the River Styx. In an instant, a wave of purple mist emanated from Xu Qing, rapidly merging with the river, changing its color, and swiftly spreading forward, forming a barrier.

The entire escorting party blurred once more, seeming poised to vanish, but under the cover of the poisonous barrier and the purple mist, their displacement failed. With a piercing shriek, the procession halted. All figures instantly turned their heads, fixing their gazes on Xu Qing, and then, in a flash, they all charged towards him.

At that moment, the surrounding River Styx also churned. Numerous corpses crawled out, and countless malevolent souls ascended into the air.

Xu Qing ignored them, maintaining his speed and rushing forward. A black iron skewer appeared beside him, flashing with lightning, sending bolts of electricity rapidly striking at the souls.

In an instant, it pierced one soul's brow, and the lightning burst, destroying it. Then it darted to another.

Moreover, his shadow expanded, and despite its revulsion, it frantically devoured the souls.

As the Vajra Sect Patriarch and the shadow acted, the souls charging at Xu Qing shrieked in agony, either collapsing, succumbing to poison, or being devoured.

Xu Qing's steps did not falter. Amidst the demise of countless souls, he drew closer to the sedan chair. From time to time, he would raise his right hand to grasp at the air, seizing any souls that came near him and crushing them.

As he advanced, his aura grew increasingly terrifying. Simultaneously, the piercing suona sound suddenly erupted from a distance, forming a soul-piercing force that assailed Xu Qing. Yet, this power was nothing to Xu Qing, who had endured the whispers of a deity. As his black umbrella materialized, he completely ignored the suona. After he took another step forward, the suona's tune changed, dissolving into sounds of collapse, shattering, and screams.

The surrounding souls continuously collapsed and died. Xu Qing's figure, like a demonic deity, could not be hindered in the slightest.

Just as he was about to reach the sedan chair, its curtain rapidly flew open. The maiden in the wedding gown swiftly emerged from within, her expression still icy cold, while an aura infinitely close to the Nascent Soul stage radiated from her.

At that moment, her hands grew long, incredibly sharp nails, and her eyes revealed double pupils as she stared at Xu Qing. Then, black patches appeared on her face, forming decaying scales, and she rapidly advanced towards Xu Qing. Her speed was considerable, stirring up waves of dense deathly aura. But the instant she neared Xu Qing, his figure suddenly vanished from her sight.

Before the serpent maiden could react, a hand like an iron clamp extended from beside her and seized her by the neck.

It was Xu Qing's hand.

The moment the serpent maiden trembled, an immense force emanated from the hand. With a crack, her neck was instantly crushed. Xu Qing swung his arm, flinging the serpent maiden's body away. However, she did not dissipate. Instead, she shrieked in mid-air, about to struggle, but before she could fall, the poisonous storm suddenly descended, roaring as it engulfed her.

Immediately after, the purple mist swiftly arrived, instantly encircling her and forming a binding force that sealed her.

Although this description may seem slow, it all transpired in the instant the serpent maiden approached Xu Qing.

Having done all this, Xu Qing remained expressionless. He had no time to heed the serpent maiden's shrieks. He strode to the sedan chair, specifically to the white jar.

The scorching heat emanating from the fragmented golden threads in his palm indicated this very jar.

Xu Qing carefully picked up the white jar and gently opened it.

A wisp of a soul, like mist, rose from the jar, slowly coalescing in mid-air, eventually forming a small white snake. It was not distinct, somewhat blurry, and seemed incomplete.

Xu Qing gazed at the white snake, and before his eyes appeared the image of the maiden in white, meditating in the stone cave.

She was very weak, seemingly trying to open her eyes but lacking the strength. In her dying state, Xu Qing raised his right hand and brought it close to the small white snake. As if sensing Xu Qing's presence, the small white snake, though too weak to open its eyes, trembled slightly and instinctively rested on Xu Qing's hand, rubbing gently against it, conveying a sense of intimacy.

Xu Qing's heart softened. Gently closing his right hand, he then glanced at the other three jars.

These three jars also contained souls, but none belonged to Ling'er. They were likely also ancient spirit race members, who, like Ling'er, had failed their inheritance in other Spirit Abysses that entered this grand world, causing their souls to fall into this realm.

To avoid any oversight, Xu Qing waved his hand. The three jars immediately opened, releasing souls of different colors, which then took form. Xu Qing carefully examined them, and after confirming none were Ling'er's soul, he withdrew his gaze and towards where the serpent maiden was trapped by his poison and purple mist. The image of the serpent maiden sitting in the sedan chair flashed in his mind. "She might have been absorbing them..."

This was also why Xu Qing hadn't completely eradicated her earlier. The way Ling'er's four jars were arranged on the sedan chair gave the distinct impression of offerings awaiting consumption. A cold glint appeared in Xu Qing's eyes, and he strode towards her.

His shadow spread behind him, the black iron skewer followed at his right side, and the poisonous barrier parted before him. The purple mist also opened a path, allowing Xu Qing to reach the serpent maiden.

The serpent maiden's soul was in a state of collapse, her expression still cold, as if no other emotion or thought resonated within her.

Xu Qing gave the serpent maiden a cold glance. The Golden Crow immediately materialized behind him. As flames surged, the colossal Golden Crow inhaled towards the serpent maiden. Instantly, her soul trembled and dispersed, transforming into a mist of souls. Within that mist were several wisps of soul threads of different colors, one of which was white.

Xu Qing raised his left hand, transforming it into its Eerie Nether form, and extended it into the soul mist. He gently extracted the white soul wisp and merged it with the small white snake. The small white snake's body trembled, becoming slightly clearer from its blurry state. It slowly opened its eyes, which held a hint of confusion, and emitted a soft sound.

"Gulu, gulu..."

A pang went through Xu Qing's heart. He noticed that Ling'er's eyes were still clouded with confusion, lacking much vibrancy. That sense of incompleteness persisted, and now she seemed to be slowly drifting back to sleep.

Through the fragmented golden threads, Xu Qing sensed a guiding presence deep within the River Styx, in the direction of its flow. That was where another part of Ling'er's soul resided. Xu Qing raised his head, gazing into the depths of the River Styx.

At that instant, low roars echoed from the end of the River Styx. These roars could shake souls, causing the River Styx itself to tremble and the world to ripple, as if a deity was breathing heavily in its deepest reaches. An unending sense of danger continuously surged within Xu Qing, growing denser, stronger, turning into a tremor that spread throughout his entire body.

It was as if every inch of his flesh warned Xu Qing: that place was extremely dangerous.

This feeling gradually became a pervasive gloom, enveloping his mind. Xu Qing fell silent, looking down at the small white snake that had fallen back asleep in his palm, then raised his head again to gaze into the depths of the River Styx.

After a long moment, he closed his right hand. As the Eerie Nether Devouring Art circulated, his entire arm became semi-transparent. He then extended his right hand into the flesh of his chest, reaching into his Sea of Consciousness. There, he gently released Ling'er's sleeping soul. This was currently the safest place for her on Xu Qing's person.

Having completed this, Xu Qing lifted his foot and began to walk, step by step, towards the end of the river.

Some things, even if dangerous, still had to be done. He would not let down anyone who had been kind to him.

As he advanced, the roars from the depths of the River Styx echoed with increasing intensity.

As Xu Qing listened, he suddenly raised his right hand and pointed at the sky. Instantly, within this dim grand world, a purple moon, wreathed in mist formed by poison, slowly ascended.

Its light spilled forth, bathing the land in purple.

For countless years, this grand world had known no moon. This was the first, and only, time one had appeared!