Chapter 851: Mountain and Sea Domain

With such caution, Xu Qing opted not to rush through the sky. Instead, he journeyed through the rainforest, using its dense environment to conceal his tracks.

Concurrently, he released the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect to scout the surroundings, and five days passed clearly in this manner.

During these five days, he encountered some cultivators participating in the second stage of the great hunt. Among them were a few Xu Qing remembered having challenged him previously.

However, Xu Qing was not in the mood to engage them. He departed before they could even notice his presence.

He also encountered countless ferocious beasts in this rainforest, residing on branches or concealed in the mud.

Some were even more bizarre in shape: mountains that suddenly trembled, rising from the ground to form giants with numerous arms, striding past Xu Qing.

There were suns with legs that ran hand-in-hand, large and small; giant centipedes that sang songs; and mushrooms that hopped along, following Xu Qing after spotting him.

There were also creatures resembling large trees, but which were actually monsters with their noses and bodies slumbering beneath the earth.

Even the blowing wind made Xu Qing's eyes narrow. The wind appeared invisible, yet it was substantial, merely transparent.

Had Xu Qing's perception not been exceptionally keen, he might have run directly into it without realizing.

There were also ghastly, goblin-like specters: numerous flying heads, walking skeletons, and chilling songs that permeated everywhere they passed.

Both tangible and intangible elements made Xu Qing feel as if this mountain and sea domain was an otherworldly realm, where the abilities and appearances of many fierce beasts defied common understanding.

Headless giant beasts, long hair floating in the mud, shattered divine palaces exuding a dangerous aura, and faceless, withered figures carrying stone tablets were all present.

Just then, Xu Qing flew over a sea of flowers within the rainforest. This colorful flower sea moved across the ground, creating ripples, and everything in its path—all vegetation and fierce beasts—was engulfed and absorbed, becoming part of it.

Upon closer inspection, what appeared to be a sea of flowers was actually formed by colorful toads, each of their leaps creating surging waves...

But this was not its most terrifying aspect. The most terrifying part of this flower sea was a fragmented divine statue at its core, carried by countless toads.

The statue was a male figure with a bare chest, possessing four heads, all with closed eyes. One hand cradled an infant against its chest, while the other propped up its chin, emitting faint snoring sounds.

As the sea of flowers moved, its fragmented state became clear: only half of its body remained, each of its four heads had missing parts, and the infant in its embrace was particularly damaged.

Seeing it from a distance, Xu Qing’s mind tensed. This was the seventeenth divine statue he had encountered in five days.

Each was distinct, yet all imparted a sense of danger, akin to the ruined divine palaces.

All these statues were fragmented; not a single one was complete, and some even appeared to have been torn limb from limb.

The one he was currently observing was considered quite well-preserved.

"What exactly happened in this mountain and sea domain many years ago...!"

With so many temples and fragmented grand divine statues, a peculiar feeling arose in Xu Qing’s heart. He bypassed the sea of flowers, pondering as he continued in his predetermined direction.

But after he had sped for the duration of an incense stick, Xu Qing's expression suddenly changed. His body sharply retreated and rapidly ascended into the sky.

Almost the instant his figure left its original position, the void in the area he had just occupied shattered, and a massive black hole appeared.

This black hole did not appear suddenly without reason; its formation originated from the earth.

Within the rainforest, in the marsh, lay a colossal fragmented divine statue, ten thousand feet in size. Its body was shattered and incomplete, but its head was relatively clear, especially its mouth, which was completely intact, and it was breathing.

Each breath created a black hole in mid-air, and simultaneously, a life-level deterrence emanated from this enormous fragmented divine statue.

Even with his impressive cultivation, astonishing combat power, and divine state, Xu Qing was still deterred by this aura and had no choice but to bypass it.

At the same time, the voice of the divine finger echoed from D-132 within his body: "Here... this..."

Amidst the trembling voice, Xu Qing’s heart stirred. "Go on!"

The divine finger shivered and whispered, "Gods died here, not just a few, but many. Heavens, how did I not know about this? I've never heard of it."

"Could it be that your main body was asleep from the moment it descended, and then when you separated, you were also suppressed and fell asleep?" The Patriarch of the Vajra Sect swooped in from a distance, transmitting a divine thought.

The divine finger fell silent. It wanted to speak but knew the other party's standing in Xu Qing's heart was likely higher than its own, so it huffed inwardly but ultimately did not retort.

Xu Qing paid no attention to the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect’s words. He recalled the fragmented divine statues he had seen along the way, and gazing at the rainforest, his eyes slowly narrowed as he took a deep breath.

The aura here seemed normal, but to Xu Qing, who understood pharmacology well, he still detected a faint scent of blood within it, coming from the mud, the vegetation, the stones, and the very world itself.

It seemed as if everything in this world was exuding blood.

"If many gods died here, who were their adversaries?" Xu Qing's understanding of the Flame Moon Profound Heaven Clan was only partial; he lacked specific knowledge, clues, and thus, a definitive answer.

So he glanced at the enormous divine statue on the ground, bypassed its edge, and was about to accelerate. But just then, whistling sounds came from the distant horizon, accompanied by seven or eight long rainbows.

Similar to Xu Qing's method, they intended to bypass the colossal divine statue's area from mid-air.

They saw Xu Qing, and he, in turn, clearly saw them. Among the seven or eight individuals were members of the Flame Moon clan, other affiliated clans, and one Siera clan member.

Evidently a hastily formed small team, their expressions instantly changed upon recognizing Xu Qing. They instinctively retreated a considerable distance, remained silent for a few breaths, then the leading Flame Moon cultivator bowed remotely to Xu Qing before turning and swiftly departing.

His followers behind him were also shaken and bowed in unison. The Siera clan member among them had a flicker in his eyes, then quickly lowered his head and bowed like the others.

They had witnessed Xu Qing's battle outside the Holy City, which had caused great turmoil in their hearts, so upon encountering him now, they dared not approach.

Xu Qing's gaze swept coldly over them. Noticing they hadn't acquired any exotic beasts, he had no interest in attacking.

His body swayed, and he left towards his destination. Sensing Xu Qing's disappearance, the group of cultivators who had rapidly distanced themselves all breathed a sigh of relief.

They exchanged glances, each noting the hesitation in the others' expressions. However, the Siera clan cultivator among them showed no hesitation and immediately pulled out a communication jade slip, preparing to transmit a message.

But the instant his hand grasped the communication jade slip, a cold voice emerged from the void beside him.

"What are you trying to do?"

As soon as the voice rang out, the expressions of the seven or eight cultivators present drastically changed. The Siera clan cultivator, in particular, gasped, instinctively trying to transmit a message into the jade slip immediately, but it was too late.

A hand extended from the void beside him, grabbing his palm and gently squeezing, crushing his hand along with the jade slip inside. Flesh and jade fragments merged together.

As a horrific scream of intense pain erupted from the Siera clan cultivator, Xu Qing, in his fourth-level divine state, emerged from the void and clamped his hand around the Siera cultivator's neck.

The other cultivators around them trembled, immediately retreating but unable to move too far, as blood-colored tentacles emanating from Xu Qing had already appeared before their faces.

It seemed that if they moved again, their brows would be instantly pierced. So, they all froze, staring in horror at the returned Xu Qing.

"It’s understandable for others to bow upon seeing me, but for your Siera clan to bow to me is a bit strange," Xu Qing calmly stated. "Especially since your gaze seemed off, and I recall having observed you before. You previously challenged me."

Indeed, this was the case. Although Xu Qing had left earlier with his meticulous mind, this small suspicious detail still made him wary. So, he returned to check and found the other party attempting to transmit a message.

"Tell me, who were you going to send that message to?" Xu Qing asked blandly.

Panic appeared in the Siera clan member’s eyes as he was about to speak, but among the cultivators who had retreated nearby, the Flame Moon Profound Heaven clan cultivator suddenly interjected, "Fellow Daoist Xu, I'll tell you!"

"Ji Dongzi released news five days ago, seeking your whereabouts and asking anyone who saw you to inform him. This Siera clan cultivator must have been trying to transmit a message for that reason."

This Flame Moon Profound Heaven clan cultivator was a clever person. He didn't want to be implicated by the Siera clan cultivator who was clearly seeking death, and he also knew of Xu Qing's decisive ruthlessness. Therefore, he understood that if the Siera clan cultivator voluntarily revealed the answer, his own life and death would be in Xu Qing's hands. If he spoke first, his chance of survival would greatly increase.

The other cultivators also reacted, speaking up one after another. Xu Qing glanced at the Siera cultivator in his hand, noticed the other party's panicked aura, and already had the answer in his heart. With a squeeze of his right hand...

With a crack, the Siera cultivator disintegrated, body and soul. Simultaneously, the other cultivators were also shaken, falling silent and gazing fearfully at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing's gaze swept over them. A poisonous restriction spread, and these cultivators, feeling its effects, turned pale.

"If you can survive until the end of the second phase, come find me for the antidote," Xu Qing said blandly, then his body flickered and disappeared without a trace.

In mid-air, the cultivators, including the Flame Moon Profound Heaven clan member, fell silent one by one; they had no other choice.

So, with bitterness, they silently departed. Only after they had gone far did Xu Qing's figure reappear from the side, his brows furrowed.

"Ji Dongzi?"