Chapter 1101: Moving a Stone to Hit Chu's Foot

"What's the big deal? A few rotten graves won't stop me. Isn't it just a Heavenly Venerable's ancestral tomb? Just dig it up!" Chu Feng declared, hands clasped behind his back, chin raised, speaking with an air of complete disdain. He didn't take any of it seriously.

Gu Chenhai was speechless, watching the youngster feigning profound thought. His smooth, youthful face was taut as he paced with his hands behind his back, exuding an air of supreme self-importance. Gu Chenhai instantly felt an urge to kick him.

The donkey spirit perked up its long ears, maintaining a solemn posture, as if meditating. Yet, it couldn't shake the feeling that Chu Feng was merely putting on airs.

Gu Chenhai said, "Young man, do you know the vastness of heaven and earth? Your strength is only comparable to an evolver at the Shaping level. How dare you lay hands on a Heavenly Venerable's ancestral tomb?"

Chu Feng, hands still clasped behind his back, responded calmly, "Because I am an exceptionally talented geologist. Forget a few crumbling graves, I can even unearth an immortal's tomb!"

"Geologist, my foot! How dare he claim that title?" Gu Chenhai scoffed internally. "Isn't he just a grave robber? To make it sound so poetic... Isn't he afraid of being struck by lightning?"

"As a genius geological explorer at the forefront of this field, there isn't a single grave, above or below ground, that I cannot unearth. There isn't a tomb that I, Ji Dade, cannot open. From the heavenly palaces of the Yang world to the underworld of the Yin world, my footprints are everywhere!"

"What an outrageous boast!" Gu Chenhai thought. He felt that heavenly thunder should strike Chu Feng, if only to disfigure him and appease the masses!

A muffled peal of thunder suddenly rumbled.

Chu Feng's scalp tingled instantly, and he bolted.

After fleeing about ten *li*, he sensed something was amiss and stopped.

The thunder originated from the depths of the plateau, signaling a disturbance in the blood lake.

The red lake, filled with numerous corpses, now saw a pale hand emerge from its depths. It brought forth thunder, shattering the void, a truly terrifying sight.

Chu Feng wiped a bead of cold sweat. "Scared the living daylights out of me," he muttered. "I really thought it was actual thunder!"

The blood lake occasionally stirred, as if the dead were reanimating. The beings interred within had been incredibly powerful in life; the slightest tremor or rustle would cause some of the corpses to shift, unleashing terrifying symbols of the Great Dao.

However, the sudden peal of thunder at that moment was strangely coincidental and eerily fitting, largely because Chu Feng himself had a guilty conscience.

"Heh heh..." Gu Chenhai chuckled.

Chu Feng kicked the stone coffin. Unwilling to linger, he called the donkey spirit and, taking Gu Chenhai with them, departed swiftly and decisively.

As they were leaving, they inevitably encountered Number Nine, making Gu Chenhai incredibly tense.

Yet, Chu Feng boldly greeted him, "Senior, have you ever tasted a creature like a Fiend? It's said to be the ultimate delicacy known to man, the most exquisite culinary delight in the Yang world!"

Number Nine remained silent, his eyes glowing green as he stared at Chu Feng.

Chu Feng continued his persuasion, eager to lure Number Nine out and unleash him upon the Taiwu lineage, wiping out their old scoundrels completely.

"Senior," Chu Feng continued, "let me tell you, creatures called Fiends are incredibly rare, possessing an astonishingly powerful bloodline. Their young are known as Taiwu, adults as Mowu, and elders as Martial Maniacs. I know where a nest of them is, but they're absurdly strong. Even in their infancy, these creatures are at the Heavenly Venerable level, and their elders are even more formidable."

Chu Feng was spouting utter nonsense, leaving Gu Chenhai dumbfounded. "Could he be any more outlandish?" he wondered.

"That sounds somewhat familiar," Number Nine said. "I think I've heard the name Hengwu before."

Ultimately, Number Nine's mind wasn't entirely sound; he had forgotten much of his past. Otherwise, Chu Feng would never have dared to try and trick him.

Beside them, Gu Chenhai was inwardly chilled. *Hengwu? Who was that?* He was an ancestor of the Heng Clan, whose true strength no one could gauge. He had led the Heng Clan to become one of the most powerful factions in the Yang world.

"Senior," Chu Feng pressed on, "do you want to join us to hunt for that nest of Fiends? The young of this creature—the Taiwu—are tender and succulent, melting in your mouth. The taste is simply exquisite!"

"I cannot leave here," Number Nine replied. "You go and capture a Fiend cub for me—a Taiwu."

After speaking, Number Nine muttered an incantation, and then wisps of blood-red light emanated from his mouth and nostrils, flying towards Chu Feng.

"Whoa, Senior, what are you doing?!"

Number Nine replied impassively, "A blood curse. If you don't bring me a Fiend cub, a Taiwu, your blood will burn to ash."

Chu Feng was utterly speechless.

He wanted to curse him out, cursing internally. This was truly... his attempt to trick him had backfired spectacularly, like lifting a stone only to drop it on his own foot. The demented Number Nine had actually pulled such a stunt on him.

He was at a loss for words, utterly helpless. How was he going to get out of this?

"Senior, Fiend cubs are all at the Heavenly Venerable realm!" Chu Feng cried out. "How can I capture a Taiwu for you? I'm no match for them at all!"

"No matter," Number Nine said, waving a hand. "You have all the time in the world. When you're capable, bring me one." He then dismissed Chu Feng.

"Let's go! To catch a Fiend cub—a Taiwu!" Chu Feng gritted his teeth, spurring the donkey as they galloped into the distance.

Once they were out of the First Mountain Under Heaven, Gu Chenhai began to laugh like a cackling old quail, his mirth grating and unpleasant. Seeing Chu Feng in such a predicament, he was absolutely delighted, his face twisted with glee.

Chu Feng's face grew darker. He furiously punched and kicked the stone coffin, but it changed nothing.

The donkey spirit, meanwhile, stood silently. In fact, it was in excellent spirits and longed to frolic and buck. It also very much wanted to ask Chu Feng: who, exactly, was the real imbecile?

"You imbecile, what's with that look?!" Chu Feng exclaimed, inadvertently noticing the donkey spirit's demeanor. Its large, rolling eyes betrayed a mischievous nature.

Without ceremony, Chu Feng recalled the stone coffin and the reincarnation soil from the donkey spirit's body, leaving not a single grain behind.

"Leave some!" the Nine Nether Ghoul shrieked.

"Leave what?!" Chu Feng snapped. "Tell me about this blood curse. How do I get rid of it?"

Gu Chenhai replied, "It's nothing serious. If you don't fulfill your promise, the true blood in your body will simply burn away."

Chu Feng's vision went black. "And you call that nothing?!"

Gu Chenhai offered reassurance, "His mind isn't quite right. With this nearly cursed evil art, he forgot to inscribe the temporal markings, so there's no time limit. You don't even need to fulfill it. Furthermore, once your strength surpasses his, the blood curse will automatically lift."

"But I still want to have it lifted as soon as possible!" Chu Feng said, adamant.

Gu Chenhai continued, "It's not particularly difficult. If you cultivate an ultimate breathing method to a profound stage, you can undo it yourself. Additionally, if you cultivate the Seven Treasures Miraculous Art to completion, you can also expel the blood curse from your body."

It felt this was no major issue at all, and it strongly suspected that Number Nine had deliberately goaded Chu Feng to encourage his rapid growth.

Hearing this speculation, Chu Feng's face darkened. "So," he said, "I'm supposed to *thank* him?!"

Gu Chenhai said very seriously, "Don't mistake his addled mind, his forgotten past, or his ignorance of the present world for a reason to lack reverence. In fact, this type of being is terrifyingly powerful. You'll likely come to thank him in the future."

Chu Feng's face flickered between expressions. He pondered deeply, and at last, stopped fretting about the blood curse on him.

Chu Feng returned to Qingzhou, re-entering the large province ruled by the Taiwu lineage.

The Yang world was now engulfed in conflict, and Qingzhou was no different. Even though the Taiwu lineage was formidable, invaders still came, with armies from other provinces marching in.

It was rumored that Heavenly Venerables had even clashed.

However, once beings of that caliber engaged in combat, the devastation was too immense. In the end, they all retreated, leaving the lower ranks to contend.

Qingzhou was relatively peaceful compared to other provinces, which were far more intense. For example, in the area adjacent to Yongzhou, bodies piled like mountains and rivers of blood flowed.

A mysterious entity had once led heavenly troops to descend upon Yongzhou, hoping to catch its ruler unprepared by launching an assault during his recent resurgence, while his vital essence was temporarily diminished.

But tragically, this being, who once commanded one-twentieth of the Yang world's territory, was terrifyingly formidable. A single roar caused the sun and moon to tremble and stars to fall, shattering the mysterious master who led the assault into a bloody mist.

After that, no one dared to approach Yongzhou again.

In fact, over the past few years, several provinces adjacent to Yongzhou quickly submitted, and Yongzhou's influence rapidly expanded and spread outward.

The Yang world was rife with conflict, with war spreading everywhere, plunging it into utter chaos. Three major factions vied for supremacy, forming an irreversible tide that swept across the primordial lands.

Relatively speaking, Qingzhou was still calm. Though there was fierce fighting, it had not yet reached the point where Heavenly Venerables or powerful beings perished.

This was primarily because the Taiwu lineage remained remarkably composed and fearless, backed as they were by a Martial Maniac. He harbored the ambition to dominate the world and feared no one.

"This Fiend cub is truly unperturbed!"

Chu Feng arrived, hundreds of thousands of *li* away, prowling a mountainous region. He was studying a map, preparing to sabotage the Taiwu lineage.

Gu Chenhai was speechless. *A Heavenly Venerable of such stature, now truly reduced to a mere Fiend cub?* If Taiwu knew, he would undoubtedly torture this youngster relentlessly for a hundred thousand years.

Chu Feng paced back and forth, hands clasped behind his back, lost in thought. The geography of the Taiwu lineage's territory in Qingzhou was no secret. After establishing their tradition for so long, the layout of their mountain gate and the locations of their various sacred sites were all well-known to the outside world.

"That old geezer, he's truly up to no good. Why would he choose such a place to inter his family's remains?"

Chu Feng was suspicious. After seeing the location where Taiwu had buried his family, he couldn't help but wonder if it was real.

It was a mountain range brimming with dense Yin qi, where a terrifyingly vast domain had been established. It gathered primordial Yin qi and drew in malevolent energy from ancient prehistoric battlefields.

By all appearances, it seemed an improper method!

"I can't help but feel this is meant to cultivate a Nine Heavens Yin Corpse!"

Chu Feng wore a puzzled expression. Within that mountain range was a terrifying domain, not configured for defense, but specifically designed to nurture Yin corpses, causing them to undergo astonishing transformations.

It was a domain for cultivating... a Nine Heavens Yin Corpse!

Gu Chenhai's eyes gleamed as he swallowed hard. "It is indeed peculiar," he said. "I also sense it's a place for nurturing terrestrial deities. This is a place of profound fortune for me! Youngster, I support you. If they resist, fight! Go in there and raze the ancestral grave of that Fiend cub, Taiwu!"

Chu Feng sought further understanding, gathering various data online and even capturing an ancient psychic beast nearby. He finally learned that Taiwu's wife might be interred in that area.

"How interesting! There's a method to this!"

A faint smile touched Chu Feng's lips; he had grasped the underlying truth.

Legend had it that Taiwu's wife had died at the hands of malevolent Yin spirits. Yet, ultimately, he had established such an astounding corpse-nourishing domain to nurture this very burial ground.

Next, Chu Feng unfolded another map and meticulously examined it. It showed several immortal lands controlled by the Taiwu lineage, along with a fortuitous immortal cavern.

Reportedly, the core disciples of this lineage were cultivated within these locations, nurtured by the immortal lands, nourished by the fortuitous immortal cavern, and supplied with various rare treasures from heaven and earth.

"Old Nine," Chu Feng suggested, "should we proceed separately? You can claim the fortunes of the deceased, and I'll handle the living, taking down a few of the Taiwu lineage's core prodigies. What do you say?"

Gu Chenhai shook his head vigorously from within the coffin. "No, I can't get in," he insisted. "I am no geologist. The most accomplished geological explorer of all time must lead me in!"