Chapter 2840: Lizard Tribe Defeated

In the Yu Chen Realm, over a vast blue sea, a streak of green light appeared on the horizon, rapidly sweeping across the sky. Not long after, the green light descended onto an island more than a hundred li in circumference.

As the light retracted, it revealed a shimmering green flying boat, on which Wang Desheng and more than a dozen cultivators stood.

Wang Desheng's face was pale, his clothes tattered, and he bore several gruesome bloodstains. He had led nine Soul Transformation cultivators and dozens of Nascent Soul cultivators into the Yu Chen Grotto-heaven in search of the Profound Nether Ghostwood. They accidentally triggered some restrictions, which killed several Nascent Soul clan members. Fortunately, they managed to find and transplant the Profound Nether Ghostwood.

As they were leaving the Yu Chen Grotto-heaven, four Lizard Clan Soul Transformation cultivators suddenly appeared and ambushed them. Two Soul Transformation cultivators perished, four were injured, and most of the Nascent Soul cultivators were killed or wounded. The Lizard Clan experts possessed powerful divine abilities. They had been guarding the exit of the Yu Chen Grotto-heaven, ambushing the group just as they left, catching them off guard and inflicting heavy losses.

The Lizard Clan Soul Transformation cultivators were soul avatars from a higher realm and did not possess Heaven-Connecting Spirit Treasures, relying solely on their divine abilities to fight. If it hadn't been for the Lizard Clan's ambush, their losses would not have been so severe. In contrast, Wang Desheng and his group had acquired several Heaven-Connecting Spirit Treasures after annihilating the Fire Lizard Clan. While the Lizard Clan's ambush caused them great trouble, the Lizard Clan also suffered considerable losses: two of their Soul Transformation cultivators were killed and one was injured. To protect the Profound Nether Ghostwood, Wang Desheng chose not to fight to the death with the Lizard Clan Soul Transformation cultivators, but instead led his clan members to flee.

"They shouldn't pursue us anymore," Wang Desheng said. "Let's recuperate here for a while. Once De Guang and the others' injuries improve, it won't be too late to leave the Thousand Gourd Realm." He spoke in a deep voice, his expression solemn.

Many clan members were injured and needed time to recover properly. He hadn't anticipated that the Lizard Clan would send four Soul Transformation cultivators to the lower realm. As far as Wang Desheng knew, high-level cultivators required World-Breaking Stones to descend with soul avatars, and there was a certain failure rate. If one's luck was poor, success was impossible. Each failed attempt meant a World-Breaking Stone was consumed, and the soul avatar destroyed. It would take thousands of years for a Void Refinement cultivator to recover a lost soul avatar, which was extremely troublesome.

The Lizard Clan sending four Soul Transformation cultivators to the lower realm meant they had acquired at least four World-Breaking Stones. Accounting for the failure rate, even more would be needed, indicating how highly the Lizard Clan valued the Profound Nether Ghostwood. What Wang Desheng had to do was protect the Profound Nether Ghostwood and transport it back to the clan. If they couldn't protect it, they would destroy it, ensuring it would never fall into the Lizard Clan's hands.

A golden-robed youth with firm features flicked his sleeve, sending hundreds of yellow formation flags shooting out in all directions, disappearing into the ground. He then took out a nine-sided yellow formation plate and cast several incantations into it. The ground began to shake violently, and countless wisps of yellow mist emerged, enveloping the entire island. After a moment, a sea breeze swept by, dispersing the yellow mist, and Wang Desheng and the others had vanished.

***

Meanwhile, in the Purple Volcano Mountain Range, the lair of the Fire Lizard Clan. A red stone plaza, spanning ten thousand mu, contained a massive red formation inscribed with countless intricate patterns. A corpulent man in red robes and a plump woman in a golden dress stood beside the red formation. Both had long lizard tails extending from their rear.

The ethereal projection of a voluptuous woman in a purple dress floated above the formation. This woman was Hu Yan, the Lizard Clan's Enforcement Elder.

"The Azure Lotus Wang Clan!" Hu Yan exclaimed, frowning. "How did a Wang Clan suddenly appear? They're not a force from the Yu Chen Realm, are they?"

"No," the corpulent man replied, "the human forces in the Yu Chen Realm were long ago wiped out by us, leaving only the old, weak, and infirm. I never expected a group of Wang Clan cultivators to emerge. I captured several Nascent Soul cultivators and performed soul-searching on them. The Azure Lotus Island Wang Clan from the Xuan Yang Realm is the same clan as this one. Their strength is considerable, with two Integration stage cultivators."

The Wang Clan's actions had disrupted their plans. If it weren't for the Profound Nether Ghostwood, they wouldn't have descended to this realm again. The last time they sent people to the lower realm to help the Fire Lizard Clan, they hadn't yet discovered the Profound Nether Ghostwood in the Yu Chen Grotto-heaven. This time, if only the Wang Clan cultivators had been a bit slower, the Profound Nether Ghostwood would have been theirs.

"The Azure Lotus Island Wang Clan!" Hu Yan said with a solemn expression. "Never mind them. You must bring back the Profound Nether Ghostwood. If that's truly impossible, lead the Fire Lizard Clan to attack other realms to see if you can find another Profound Nether Ghostwood."

"Yes, Elder Hu," the corpulent man and the plump woman replied in unison, not daring to delay.

A deafening roar sounded, shaking the earth and mountains as alarms blared loudly. "Oh no," a man's voice cried in alarm, "the Wang Clan's reinforcements have arrived!"

"Act according to the situation," Hu Yan instructed. "If it's truly impossible, return first." Hu Yan instructed, knowing they were outnumbered.

"Yes, Elder Hu," the corpulent man replied. Hu Yan's ethereal projection then dissipated.

***

Outside the Purple Volcano Mountain Range, a massive azure lotus platform floated high in the sky. Wang Qingshan and dozens of cultivators stood upon it, with no less than ten Soul Transformation cultivators among them. As the saying goes, a lion uses its full strength even when hunting a rabbit, and Wang Qingshan did not underestimate the enemy. They had just arrived in the Yu Chen Realm when they received news that Lizard Clan experts had descended and reoccupied the Purple Volcano Mountain Range, so they immediately rushed over.

Wang Qingshan held a shimmering azure flying sword in his hand, his expression indifferent. A red light barrier enveloped the entire Purple Volcano Mountain Range, with nine crimson flames flickering on its surface. He formed a sword seal and swung his azure flying sword, striking at the void above the Purple Volcano Mountain Range.

Accompanied by a piercing sword hum, thousands of shimmering azure sword qi swept out. Hundreds of sword cultivators each controlled their flying swords, unleashing sharp sword qi. Tens of thousands of multi-colored sword qi converged, forming a massive nine-colored sword light that slashed down onto the red light barrier. Han Yuxiu and the others were not idle either, unleashing their treasures to attack the red light barrier.

Not long after, with a loud bang, the nine flames shattered, and the red light barrier likewise crumbled. Wang Qingshan formed an incantation, and the azure lotus platform flew forward. Along the way, they encountered many Lizardmen, whom Han Yuxiu and the others promptly eliminated.

Wang Qingshan fully extended his divine sense but did not detect any Lizard Clan Soul Transformation cultivators. The Lizard Clan was known for their mastery of concealment arts, a fact that was well-known. Wang Qingshan formed a sword seal, and his azure flying sword shot out, hovering high in the sky. He changed his sword seal, and the azure flying sword vibrated gently, emitting a clear and loud sword hum. Tens of thousands of azure sword qi swept out, engulfing everything in all directions.

With rumbling sounds, large numbers of buildings were destroyed, leaving no living thing behind as dust and smoke filled the sky. Still, no Lizard Clan Soul Transformation cultivators were seen.

"Alright," Wang Qingshan conceded, "let's go check the Yu Chen Grotto-heaven." Having found no Lizard Clan Soul Transformation cultivators, Wang Qingshan had no choice but to change his strategy and head to the Yu Chen Grotto-heaven. He formed an incantation, and the azure lotus platform flew high into the sky, disappearing into the horizon.