The monster threw the jade bottle into the air, activating it.
In an instant, a mass of cyan light appeared in mid-air. With a muffled sound, a phantom identical to the jade bottle flickered into existence. After a few flashes, it rapidly expanded to a size of ten zhang. As a buzzing sound arose from within the bottle, its mouth slowly turned to face the distant sea of mist.
Almost simultaneously, astonishing changes occurred in the blue waves on the other side.
A blinding pillar of light erupted from the center of the blue waves, causing the surrounding water to surge outward like a waterfall. At the heart of the waves, a hazy blue gourd, no smaller than the phantom bottle, emerged. With a swift rotation, its mouth also aligned with the Dark Nether Mist Sea.
The two foreign beings simultaneously activated their treasures with incantations. With two soft “puff” sounds, a thick cyan beam shot from the bottle phantom, while streams of blue radiance unfurled from the gourd.
As the two attacks vanished into the mist sea, the nearby black fog churned violently, surging toward the cyan beam and blue radiance. The mist then spiraled into two distinct pillars, pouring into the two containers at an astonishing speed.
The rate at which the treasures absorbed the mist was shockingly fast. Wherever the cyan light and blue radiance passed, vast swathes of the mist were cleared in moments—only for the surrounding black fog to immediately roll back in.
The capacity of these two artifacts seemed limitless, showing no signs of strain despite the endless influx of mist.
At that moment, a phantom flickered above the blue gourd, revealing the fish-eyed foreign being standing atop it, coldly observing the scene below without a word. Meanwhile, the horned youth, now transformed into a massive monster, sat cross-legged beneath the bottle phantom and closed his eyes.
Despite the staggering amount of mist absorbed, the Dark Nether Mist Sea was vast beyond measure. After two full days and nights, the two foreigners had only managed to absorb a fraction of the mist—perhaps one-fiftieth. It seemed that completely draining the entire sea would take at least a month or two.
Yet, the two foreigners showed no impatience, continuing to channel their treasures tirelessly. To them, the time required seemed utterly inconsequential.
This sight, observed from afar by Han Li through the Wanlong Pearl in his cave, left him both speechless and uneasy.
If these two were to linger here for so long, how could he possibly cultivate in peace? Ideally, they would simply collect the mist and leave. But if they harbored other intentions, the situation could turn dire.
However, fleeing now carried risks no less severe than staying. Thus, Han Li refrained from rash action.
Nevertheless, he had already packed up most of his belongings in the cave. Aside from the seventy-two sealed flying swords made of Golden Lightning Bamboo, all other important items had been stored in his bracelet. He was prepared to flee at a moment’s notice if danger arose.
A day later, the two foreigners simultaneously cast spells, causing their containers to double in size and drastically increase their absorption speed.
Moreover, whether through additional secret techniques or other means, the number of black mist pillars drawn from the sea surged from two to over a dozen. Each swirling pillar lifted vast swathes of fog into the air, funneling it into the two treasures.
As a result, the mist sea shrank at more than twice its previous rate, its density visibly thinning by the minute.
Seeing this, the fish-eyed foreigner chuckled and turned to the horned youth, who had reverted to his original form. “Brother Min, with the ‘Spirit Absorption’ technique, we should be able to collect all the True Spirit Yin Qi here in just over ten days!”
The horned youth smiled, about to reply, when his expression suddenly changed. From deep within the mist sea came an enraged screech.
The moment the sound reached them, the black mist pillars surging toward the gourd and bottle phantom froze, then shattered as if struck by an invisible force, dispersing with dull thuds.
Below, despite the cyan beam and blue radiance sweeping through the mist, the fog remained utterly still, not a ripple disturbing its surface, as if it had solidified into a single entity.
Exchanging grave glances, the horned youth and the fish-eyed man tensed.
The distant screech grew louder, as if something was rapidly approaching from the depths of the mist sea.
“Is it that thing?” the fish-eyed man asked cryptically.
“Most likely,” the horned youth replied, his brow furrowed.
“No wonder the Tianpeng people left this True Spirit Yin Qi untouched. They must fear this creature. Given their reverence for avian spirits, this thing is probably the remains of some heavenly bird,” the fish-eyed man muttered bitterly.
“Probably. The question is, what stage of evolution has it reached? If it’s at the final stage, we should turn back now,” the horned youth sighed.
“Agreed. I have no desire to die here, let alone have my soul devoured beyond reincarnation,” the fish-eyed man said, taking a deep breath.
The horned youth didn’t respond. Instead, he formed a hand seal and pointed at the giant bottle phantom in the sky.
With a muffled pop, the phantom shattered like foam, and a streak of cyan light shot out, circling before landing in his palm—the jade bottle, which vanished instantly.
The fish-eyed man cautiously reached out, and the surrounding waves dissipated. The enormous gourd shrank dramatically, returning to his hand.
Standing side by side, the two foreigners fixed their gazes on the direction of the screech, silent.
Though the sound seemed close, it took the time of a cup of tea before a howling wind erupted from the mist sea. A white shadow, hundreds of zhang in size, burst forth, flashing through the fog before emerging at the edge, its icy glare locking onto the two.
It was a skeletal bird with nine heads, each skull burning with eerie green flames. Its massive bone frame was wreathed in inky black Yin Qi, writhing like living tendrils, amplifying its terrifying aura.
“A Nine-Headed Bird! So this is the cursed remains hidden here!” the fish-eyed man exclaimed, turning pale.
“But it’s only in the second stage of corpse transformation—not yet a Netherworld Corpse. Its strength is roughly comparable to ours. The real concern lies in how much of its baleful aura remains. If even half persists, we should retreat immediately,” the horned youth said, his tone steady though a trace of unease flickered through.
“Let’s test it. Surely you’re not willing to abandon all this True Spirit Yin Qi?” the fish-eyed man said through gritted teeth.
“Of course not. My cultivation depends on it. We’ll each strike once,” the horned youth declared.
Before the fish-eyed man could reply, the nine-headed bird let out a piercing cry. Its central head reared back, while the other eight gaped wide.
A deafening roar followed as fireballs, wind blades, ice spikes, lightning, and countless other elemental attacks spewed forth, blanketing half the sky in a devastating barrage.
Yet, faced with this onslaught, the two foreigners remained calm.
“I’ll go first,” the fish-eyed man said, forming a seal. Deep blue light surged around him as he casually pointed at the incoming attacks.
A thin blue beam shot from his fingertip, expanding into a vast curtain that shielded both him and the horned youth. With an incantation, the curtain solidified into a translucent ice wall.
The attacks struck like a storm, explosions and shrieks erupting across the wall’s surface, their dazzling lights engulfing it entirely.
The central bird head cawed triumphantly, intensifying its assault.
Then, a cold snort cut through the chaos. With a sharp “crack,” a deeper blue light erupted, spreading unnaturally fast across a hundred-zhang radius.
Space twisted within the blue glow, and all attacks passing into it vanished without a trace.
The fish-eyed man’s rapid chanting echoed as the light flared, surging back toward the skeletal bird with terrifying speed. In a breath, it was upon the creature.
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