Chapter 1180: Awakening of the Netherworld King

Mu Zi and the other party had only clashed for a short few seconds, but the customers in the pub were greatly startled. With their vision and hearing, they could not sense the movement from the opposite street when the gray fog launched a counterattack. However, they could clearly hear the explosion when the artifact and the gray fog collided in the bar. Furthermore, in that moment of silence, many people saw the blue steel needle artifact, which was one of the symbolic artifacts used by the Ninth Shade Faction.

The face of the big-mouthed miner who had spread the information instantly turned pale. Even a blind man could see that a member of the Ninth Shade Faction had taken action against him. He had just been bragging to a few good friends who had nothing to do with this incident in the bar, but he never thought that he would offend one of the Three Great Factions. Even though a mysterious great figure had saved him in the shadows, everyone knew that in the underground world, once one offended one of the Three Great Factions, even the disciples from smaller factions would not have a place to take shelter in the entire underground world, let alone if one was a mere miner. Even if one was lucky and did not die today, they would not have a place to hide tomorrow or the day after.

Meanwhile, the idlers who were surrounding him and listening to his gossip were instantly so shocked that they ran helter-skelter. They did not dare to stand within one meter’s radius of this big-mouth as they were afraid that the Ninth Shade Faction would misunderstand that they were related to him in some way. However, the two inconspicuous fellows who had been sitting at a table walked over leisurely.

The big-mouth was dumbfounded as he looked at them and was so frightened that his teeth started to chatter. However, one of the fellows smiled and patted his shoulder. Then, he poured a glass of wine for the big-mouth. “Don’t be afraid. We are not from the Ninth Shade Faction. Tell me everything you know.”

The fellow spoke as he drank. At the same time, Mu Zi took out a heavy bag of Gold Star Stones from his pocket. “As long as you are clear, and everything you say is true, all these will be yours.”

The big-mouth trembled in fear. Even though he could not look away from the heavy bag of Gold Star Stones, when he recalled that this matter concerned the Ninth Shade Faction, he was instinctively afraid and rejected them. His teeth were chattering, and he simply could not speak.

Meanwhile, the baldie beside the person who spoke flashed a smile, revealing a mouth full of spotlessly white teeth. “Speak, speak.”

The baldie’s voice had some unknown magic. It provided some genuine guidance but also contained a powerful confidence. As a result, one unconsciously felt at ease and developed trust in him just by listening to his voice.

The big-mouth’s trembling body gradually calmed down. He was not dumb. Since the Ninth Shade Faction was already targeting him thanks to his thoughtless words, regardless of whether he spoke now or not, the Ninth Shade Faction would definitely not let him off. He would rather seek the protection of these two people.

In any case, these two people had resisted the Ninth Shade Faction and protected him. Since they dared to publicly oppose the Ninth Shade Faction, these two people were definitely great figures with great abilities. He would rely on them and overcome this situation before anything else. As for the future, as long as he obtained this large sum of money and had the temporary protection of these two people, it was not impossible for him to spend a large amount of money to obtain an identity in the Land. Perhaps this would be his only way out.

Mu Zi’s voice and his desire to live allowed him to finally calm down. He picked up the glass of alcohol on the table and fiercely took a large gulp, as if he was giving himself confidence. “My Lords, I am a miner working at the Black Gold Mines along the Netherworld River. I am all on my own and am rather poor, without a house in Black Gold Town. Thus, I built a canopy in a small tree not too far away from the mines.

“Two nights ago, I was sleeping deeply when I suddenly heard a loud sound from the shore. When I got up to take a look, two almighty figures were fighting. One of them was the almighty elder from the Ninth Shade Faction, while the other was said to have come from the Earth. His name was Wang Zhong, and he was an Earthling…”

He had personally witnessed what had happened that night along the riverbank. Furthermore, Elder Hades from the Ninth Shade Faction, the Solid Core Blood Demons, and even Wang Zhong had not concealed their identities in their conversation. Naturally, he heard everything. Furthermore, this miner’s thinking was clear, and he retold everything that had happened that night. As Grai and Mu Zi listened to him, their expressions turned darker and uglier.

Wang Zhong had come to the underground world? He had been tricked at the Dragon’s Head Shore to come to Black Gold Town? The Ninth Shade Faction and the Blood Demon Race had worked together, set up the Ninth Shade Killing Formation, and sent Elder Hades from their Faction to take action? Furthermore, at the very end, Wang Zhong had been severely injured and fell into the Netherworld River?!

No one understood the Netherworld River better than Mu Zi and Grai. Even though they could ignore the infiltration of Netherworld aura from the Netherworld River and even actively absorb it, Mu Zi was only able to reach this stage with the guidance of the Netherworld King, and Grai was able to do so with Mu Zi’s guidance. Otherwise, ordinary creatures definitely could not completely resist the infiltration of the Netherworld aura. Even a Gold Core expert would only be able to weaken the damage to some extent. However, Wang Zhong’s strength was still far from the Gold Core Realm. Furthermore, he was heavily injured when he fell into the Netherworld River. How would he be able to survive that way? This could not even be described as a 10% chance of survival. He would definitely be dead!

“What about that person’s appearance, clothes, and the weapons he used…?” Mu Zi’s voice trembled slightly, as if he was doing his utmost to restrain something. He was interrogating the miner. It was very likely that this was a rumor, or a deliberate act by a careful planner.

“He seemed very lofty and had a rugged voice. At first, I thought that he was a Black Titan, but later on, I heard them say that it was a disguise,” the big-mouthed miner spoke honestly. “In terms of weapons, he was using a long golden sword, but I couldn’t clearly see what techniques he used. In any case, he was able to fight a heated battle with the almighty Gold Core expert from the Ninth Shade Faction. It seemed as if he had even managed to destroy their Ninth Shade Killing Formation before that…”

Grai and Mu Zi’s hearts sank even further. If the miner had described Wang Zhong’s appearance accurately, they might have suspected that this miner was lying. After all, the battle between Wang Zhong and an almighty Gold Core expert would involve a very large area. This miner was not in the Void Core Realm and was simply an ordinary person from the underground world. No matter how good his eyesight was, it was limited. Furthermore, it was not likely for him to be that close to the battle. How would he be able to clearly describe Wang Zhong’s appearance?

The deeds that Wang Zhong had accomplished in the Heavenly Gates had spread widely in the underground world. Furthermore, Wang Zhong and Grai had met once before. Thus, Mu Zi and Grai understood his relationship with the Heavenly Shell Race as well. Moreover, the identity of a Black Titan was the false front often used by the Heavenly Shell Race in the underground world. This was not rare for the great Factions in the underground world. Mu Zi and Grai frequently made deals with the various great Factions and knew this general knowledge.

Pa!

Mu Zi suddenly grabbed the miner’s hand, and his expression was dark. He was like a completely different person from the Mu Zi who was full of smiles just now. “Which part of the riverbank? Bring me there!”

The moment he finished speaking, he was already dragging the miner and taking large strides out of the pub at a very fast speed. Grai, who was beside him, was dumbfounded. Then, Mu Zi and the miner disappeared.

This was terrible!

Grai silently grumbled. He could sense that fury and bloodthirstiness had risen up from Mu Zi just now. Even though he was not being guided by the will of the Netherworld King this time and these emotions came from Mu Zi himself, once these bloodthirsty emotions surfaced, he was giving the will of the Netherworld King the opportunity to control him.

He hurriedly chased after Mu Zi with large strides. However, before he could clearly see Mu Zi’s tracks, two figures were flying here from the opposite street. They were full of anger as they stopped Grai. “Halt!”

“Are you thinking of leaving after hurting a member of the Ninth Shade Faction?” They were two disciples wearing the clothes of the Ninth Shade Faction. There were bloodstains on their hands. It was obvious that the person who Mu Zi had attacked and injured was their comrade. At that moment, they angrily said, “Little Void Core, stay there!”

Grai was already extremely anxious. He was worried about both Mu Zi and Wang Zhong. Furthermore, the Ninth Shade Faction that had “killed” Wang Zhong was now looking for trouble?

ROAR~~~

An ice-cold voice could be heard from between Grai’s teeth. Closely after, a gray light turned into a shadow, which dispersed itself. Then, he turned into a gray-colored blood fog and passed through the two disciples. In the blink of an eye, he had disappeared from the end of the street.

Meanwhile, in the middle of the street, the two Void Core disciples from the Ninth Shade Faction widened their eyes at the same time. They stood where they were and were motionless.

A slight breeze blew past. Then, their bodies rapidly dried up as their skin turned dry and wrinkled. It was as if all the blood in their body had been sucked dry. They turned into two terrifying dry corpses that simply fell over.

Grai chased after Mu Zi at an extremely fast speed, but in the end, he was unable to catch up to him.

When he followed Mu Zi’s aura to the riverbank, Mu Zi and the miner were nowhere to be found. However, Grai could sense the remains of the dense Netherworld aura that Mu Zi had left behind.

Grai’s expression suddenly changed. He knew that this was not the power that Mu Zi typically showed when they cultivated. This Netherworld aura was too pure and too thick. It was from the Netherworld King! Had Mu Zi actively released him? Or had he taken advantage of the situation while Mu Zi was furious and had lost his self-control to appear?

Rumble~ Bang bang~

Grai was dumbfounded for a moment. Then, he heard the loud sounds of combat from the distance. Someone shouted in fright, “You dare to do so?!”

“You are?!”

This shout was long and powerful. One could instantly tell that an almighty Gold Core had shouted. Furthermore, the ear-piercing sounds of combat that exploded from the distance were definitely of a scale that a Gold Core expert could cause.

If Mu Zi dared to take action and deal with an almighty Gold Core expert, Grai knew that Mu Zi had definitely released the Netherworld King! Cold sweat dripped from Grai’s forehead. He rapidly rushed towards the place of combat. It was only several dozen kilometers away, and the current Grai would only need two or three minutes to complete this journey. However, before he could even complete half the journey, the battle had ended.

Even from a distance, Grai could see that the blue shadow and aura of the almighty Gold Core expert had spread throughout. However, a wisp of gray Netherworld aura easily pierced through. Even though the will of the Netherworld King was very evil, he had never lied. Ordinary Gold Core experts could not even struggle when they faced him. Only a few peak king-leveled Gold Cores could barely exchange a few blows with him.

The Gold Core aura was rapidly vanishing. Grai desperately shouted, “Mu Zi!”

He was worried that Mu Zi’s heart of slaughter would continue to manifest. With Mu Zi’s current state and speed, if he ran away, Grai might not be able to catch up to him.

“Ha ha ha ha, the Ninth Shade Faction! I like you guys too much, but I’m sorry. I’m going to exterminate your entire Faction! Right now, all of your people here will die.”

Before Grai’s voice could reach Mu Zi, Grai heard Mu Zi’s terrifying and strange roar reverberating throughout the world.

Grai’s expression instantly turned deathly pale. This was the voice and tone of the Netherworld King. Not only had he appeared, but he was even completely controlling Mu Zi’s body! It was too fast. All these had happened too quickly, to the extent that Grai could not deal with it in time! Only a short few minutes had passed since Mu Zi had lost his rationality in the bar and pulled the miner out. What in the world happened in the past few minutes?

“The Netherworld King! It’s the Netherworld King!”

“Help! Help us!”

“Hurry up and run! Flee! Flee, flee, flee!”

Voices of terror sounded. There were many people present. However, closely after, the water from the neighboring Netherworld River suddenly started to boil, and a black wave that was several meters tall suddenly rose from it. Its water abruptly crashed into the shore like a man-eating beast!

Right after, all these cries for help, screams of fear, and sounds of fleeing completely vanished.

Grai accelerated and ran over. When he reached the area, it was completely filled with corpses that had blood flowing out from their seven orifices. The bodies were covered by the water from the Netherworld River and were pitch-black. This crowd included the miner that Mu Zi had pulled to the riverbank. Meanwhile, Mu Zi was nowhere to be found.

Even the miner had been killed…!

Grai simply felt a cold chill down his spine. When Mu Zi had clashed with the Three Great Factions, even though his body was temporarily controlled by the Netherworld King, at the very least, Mu Zi still retained a certain level of consciousness. Thus, he was able to forcibly reject and stop lending his body to the Netherworld King.

However, from the look of things now, if Mu Zi was even slightly awake, with his personality, he would definitely not kill the innocent miner along with everyone else. The only possibility was that Mu Zi’s current state was much more severe than in the previous battle. The Netherworld King had completely taken control of him! This was the worst circumstance. It was very likely that Mu Zi would fall into an eternal slumber, never to wake up again.

Grai had to find him immediately! If Mu Zi was not asleep for long, there might be a chance to awaken him, even though waking up Mu Zi in front of the Netherworld King was no doubt nonsense… But if he was going to give up now, then he would no longer be Grai.

There were no traces of Mu Zi in his surroundings. Only the cold Netherworld wind was left blowing on the riverbank. Where would he find Mu Zi?