Chapter 361: A Dark Night with High Winds

The entire Ling Family was currently cultivating atop the fragmented Flame Volcano.

When Flame Volcano fractured, it broke into several large sections. Under the direction of the Horned Demon Race, the Ling Family claimed one of these sections, digging out a cave in this area of the Flame Volcano and using it as their cultivation hall.

As Qin Lie followed Ling Yushi to the Ling Family’s cultivation area, he saw several young children whose hair and eyes had become purple.

“Qin Lie, you’ve come!”

Upon seeing Qin Lie arrive, Ling Xuanxuan’s eyes brightened as she subconsciously began to laugh in joy, “Big Brother Qin, this Nine Hell Evil Scripture that we cultivate, did you find it for us?”

Ling Feng also emerged, his expression calm. However, traces of excitement could be seen within his eyes.

Upon seeing Qin Lie walk over, Ling Chengzhi and many Ling Family members all waved in greeting, their attitudes friendly and warm.

“Sigh. If only elder brother was still alive. He definitely would have been very pleased if he knew that our Ling Family still survived to this day,” Ling Chengzhi said wistfully.

“Uncle Ling, the Ling Family is currently the enemy of the entire Scarlet Tide Continent. What is there to be happy about?” Qin Lie walked into the bright cave, observing its spacious interior and the many small stone rooms that had been constructed. As he did so, he felt like it was very similar to the jail cells of Profound Heaven Alliance.

“Haha, don’t worry, we have already thought it through. Whether we are an evil race or not, we will naturally be able to stand upon this land as long as we are strong enough!” Ling Chengzhi’s eyes revealed a vigorous ambition as he became excited. “Qin Lie, we recently had a few more children show signs of the Evil God’s blood! Under Yushi’s guidance, all of the Ling Family clansmen with the Evil God’s blood flowing within them have recently experienced alarming rates of growth in their cultivation realms!”

The first volume of the Nine Hell Evil Scripture had thoroughly awakened Ling Yushi’s blood of the Evil God. Recorded within this volume of the Nether Realm’s secret scripture of the martial way was the most traditional cultivation spirit art of the evil races.

Ling Yushi currently possessed this volume of the Nine Hell Evil Scripture.

Ling Yushi had recently begun passing on the spirit arts of the Nine Hell Evil Scripture to her fellow clansmen. In doing so, she discovered that the cultivation speed of practitioners, whose bodies had the blood of the Evil God, rapidly progressed as they cultivated the Nine Hell Evil Scripture.

“The Evil God’s blood flows within your bodies, and you all are cultivating the sacred scripture of the evil races. Furthermore, there is nether demonic energy here for all of you to absorb, so of course the speed of your cultivation would be incredibly fast.” Qin Lie looked at Ling Xuanxuan, then Ling Feng, before finally turning to look at Ling Chengzhi. “Uncle Ling, do all of you have any plans for the future?”

Suddenly, the gazes of Ling Chengzhi, Ling Xuanxuan, Ling Feng, and the others all landed upon the figure of Ling Yushi.

It was extremely clear. As of now, Ling Yushi had already become the Ling Family’s cornerstone, surpassing her father’s status within the hearts and minds of the Ling Family clansmen.

“Qin Lie, we want to use the spatial teleportation formation and enter the Nether Continent as soon as possible,” Ling Yushi suddenly said.

“There’s actually a teleportation formation inside of Herb Mountain?!” Ling Chengzhi exclaimed.

Ling Xuanxuan, Ling Feng, and the others showed excited expressions. They seemed to be extremely restless.

“Qin Lie already confirmed it on his recent tripe. There is a complete spatial teleportation formation within Herb Mountain.” Ling Yushi suddenly smiled, saying in a soft voice, “Not only did Grandpa Qin Shan already know the true identity of my Ling Family, it seems like he also did many things in secret to help us. If there comes a day where I meet Grandpa Qin Shan once more, I will gracefully thank him in the name of my father, my grandfather, and all of the Ling Family clansmen.”

“Then there is even more that we need to thank Qin Lie for. If not for him, our Ling Family would have perished long ago!” Ling Chengzhi said. Each word was powerfully articulated.

A sharp emotional glint flashed through the purple eyes of Ling Xuanxuan and Ling Feng as they both suddenly looked at Qin Lie.

“Have you all decided?” Qin Lie sighed silently in his heart.

He hadn’t expected that Ling Yushi would be the decisionmaker for the Ling Family, and that she would decide to go to the Nether Continent through the spatial teleportation formation as soon as possible.

Ling Yushi hadn’t mentioned the matter to him on the way over, so Qin Lie was somewhat perplexed.

“The inheritance altars of the Nether Realm’s various races are in the Nether Continent, as are many secrets of the Dark Nether Race.” Ling Yushi’s face was full of regret as she said, “According to the words of Senior Ku Luo, the Dark Nether Race constructed a Dark Nether Underground Palace in a secret underground area in the Nether Continent. Buried inside of this underground palace are… many secrets of the Dark Nether Race. However, only those who possess the Evil God’s blood can enter the underground palace.”

“Qin Lie, your grandfather’s construction of the teleportation formation was probably so that we and Ku Luo’s group could return the Nether Continent,” Ling Chengzhi added.

Qin Lie nodded silently.

“Will you be going to the Nether Continent with us?” Ling Yushi looked at Qin Lie expectantly.

“We’ll see when the time comes,” Qin Lie replied indifferently.

As Qin Lie spent time with the Ling Family, he learned of their motives and preparations to go to the Nether Continent.

“The Nether Continent…”

Qin Lie repeated those words in his heart while using his soul to contact Xue Li and ask, “Have you discovered anything relating to my grandfather?”

“Don’t be in such a rush. I am still searching for those artificers. I need time too, you know,” Xue Li replied. “Also, the ‘Land of Chaos’ isn’t the same as other places. It has never had a moment of peace and is perpetually at war. Compared to the martial practitioners of the various forces, those who live in the ‘Land of Chaos’ are complete madmen. They are extremely insane practitioners.

“Land of Chaos?” Qin Lie asked stunned.

“The Land of Chaos is where I used to live. It is comprised of five main continents, Heavenly Slaughter, Heavenly Silence, Heavenly Calamity, Heavenly Wither, and Heavenly Fissure. The Terminator Profound Bomb that you possess comes from Heavenly Silence Continent’s Forefather Terminator. In the past, my Blood Fiend Sect was a Silver force in the Heavenly Calamity Continent. However, it has already been taken over…

“The continents in the Land of Chaos are rich with natural resources. There are many secret areas in each continent where spirit herbs and spirit plants are plentiful. Of course, the number of martial practitioners and forces there is also extremely high. They all fight year round, making this land extremely chaotic.

“There are also quite a few passageways which go directly to sub worlds within the Land of Chaos. Therefore, there are many members of strange races moving around within the Land of Chaos, sometimes merging with the forces of the five main continents. Sigh. Anyway, that place will never be peaceful. There are madmen and thugs running around who will kill you the moment you let your guard down. Many die without even knowing how they died.

“If the old you were to step foot in the Land of Chaos, I guarantee that you wouldn’t last a month. Now however, you might be able to adapt to the environment there and adjust to the bloodiness and cruelty,” Xue Li replied.

“I only want to know about news of my grandfather!” Qin Lie said.

“Just give me a while longer,” Xue Li replied.

“Do you know of the Nether Continent?” Qin Lie suddenly remembered his reason for contacting Xue Li.

“I’ve heard of the place before. I seem to remember that it was possible to travel there from my Land of Chaos to the Nether Continent if one used a secret teleportation formation and took several other stops. However, I’ve never gone. I only know that it was forcibly taken over in the past by the evil races of the Nether Realm. Later, when the evil races were driven back to the Nether Realm, the continent was supposedly sealed so that outsiders were unable to enter,” Xue Li explained.

“Are there a lot of teleportation formations in the Land of Chaos?” Qin Lie asked, stunned.

“Mn. All of the teleportation formations are controlled by the most powerful forces and allow for movement across continents. There are also people from the mainland who are not afraid of death and take teleportation formations to the Land of Chaos to temper themselves. However, many of them are just seeking their own deaths, heh heh. Those who come from other continents are generally unable to survive for very long. They are quickly torn to shreds by the madmen of the Land of Chaos.”

Xue Li let out two strange laughs, then said, “Shit, I originally thought that, after a thousand and two hundred years, the place could have become less crazy. I never expected that it would become even more chaotic than before. I hasn’t even been long since I arrived and I’ve already been chased three times with each chase being even more difficult than the last…”

“Inform me of any news about my grandfather.”

Qin Lie stopped his conversation with Xue Li, his soul consciousness recondensing together.

Three days later.

Atop the desolate mountain peak, three Fragmentation Realm martial practitioners, Song Yu, Xie Yaoyang, and Nie Yun, stood beside Song Siyuan, Xie Zhizhang, and Nie Han. They were waiting for the sun’s descent and the appearance of the elites of the Horned Demon Race.

The members of the Horned Demon Race were innately unable to resist the sun’s rays, so they had arranged for the exchange to occur at night.

Night fell, yet no moonlight shone down on the peak. The wind slowly began to pick up, but the group of martial practitioners from Profound Heaven Alliance continued to calmly wait.

“Father, Uncle Xie, and Uncle Nie, I feel that our recent exchanges with the Horned Demon Race are not quite proper,” Song Tingyu said. She stood amidst the group, her brows furrowed as she continued. “I heard that the people of Eight Extreme Temple and Joyful Union Sect have recently been inviting us to work with them on deciding a date to besiege the Horned Demon Race. When that time comes, if our dealings with the Horned Demon Race are ever exposed, there will be terrible consequences for us. I’m afraid that we could instantly become a public enemy.”

“That is why we are so cautious,” Nie Yun whispered as he chuckled softly.

“I am afraid of the Horned Demon Race exposing our dealings with them after the war starts, and they are unable to withstand the attacks of Joyful Union Sect, Eight Extreme Temple, and our Profound Heaven Alliance.” Song Tingyu laughed bitterly.

“Let us deal with that when the time comes. Let us first secure the Profound Yin Nine Leaf Lotuses,” Song Yu responded indifferently.

“The Profound Yin Nine Leaf Lotus! Again, you bring up the Profound Yin Nine Leaf Lotus! You have all gone insane!” Song Tingyu cried. There were hints of anger in her words.

Song Tingyu had long opposed this move. She was afraid that, if they became so deeply involved with the Horned Demon Race, Joyful Union Sect and Eight Extreme Temple would discover it. She was also afraid of the Horned Demon Race exposing the information themselves.

However, those were just her own views. Her father, as well as Xie Yaoyang and Nie Yun, had all become completely blinded by their thoughts of the Profound Yin Nine Leaf Lotuses and no longer cared about anything else.

“What time did Qin Lie say they would come?” Song Yu suddenly asked.

“Soon,” Song Tingyu responded reluctantly.

“Qin Lie… this fellow is not bad. Haha, if this matter resolves nicely, he will be able to return to our Profound Heaven Alliance,” Song Yu suddenly exclaimed.

“Everyone is well aware of his relation to the evil races. How could he possibly return to Profound Heaven Alliance? Even if he truly did return, would you dare accept him?” Song Tingyu sneered.

“Nothing is absolute,” Song Yu said enigmatically.

Song Tingyu furrowed her brow then shrewdly asked, “Father, are you hiding something from me?”

“Haha.” Just as Song Yu was about to respond, he saw four Spirit Hunting Beasts fly out from the area shrouded in the nether demonic energy.

“They have come,” Song Yu whispered.

The pupils of Xie Yaoyang and Nie Yun shrank as looks of caution emerged on their faces.

Chapter 362: Betrayal

Sitting high atop a Spirit Hunting Beast, the three Horned Demon elites with six horns, Ku Luo, Kang Meng, and Duo Luo, moved past the river lush with Demon Cleansing Orchids with Qin Lie and arrived at the desolate mountain.

Song Yu and the others from Profound Heaven Alliance grew serious the moment they saw the arrival of the Spirit Hunting Beasts.

“Qin Lie, long time no see.” Song Yu wore a calm look and smiled at Qin Lie after he arrived, beckoning him to come down.

“How have you been, Alliance Chief Song?” Qin Lie greeted him in return.

He looked at Ku Luo.

Ku Luo’s thin, tall body slightly shook atop the Spirit Hunting Beast. A tremendous, seeping soul energy that felt like dense air slowly covered the surrounding area, penetrating into the mountain and deep into the ground.

Riding the Spirit Hunting Beasts, Ka Meng, Duo Luo, and the quartet of Horned Demon warriors with five horns were silent and motionless.

They were waiting for Ku Luo to finish his soul detection.

Song Yu, Xie Yaoyang, and Nie Yun looked each other in the eyes and said nothing, instead quietly waiting for Ku Luo.

Beneath the night sky, formless ripples surged through the air, and anyone who was sensitive to the touch of the soul would know that Ku Luo’s immense soul was spreading around their bodies like a spider web.

A while later, Ku Luo looked beneath Song Yu’s feet.

Song Yu only needed to lock eyes with Ku Luo once to know what he meant. He immediately nodded at Song Siyuan and instructed, “Have the men take it out.”

Qin Lie, Ku Luo, and the others continued to sit on the Spirit Hunting Beast. The wings of the Spirit Hunting Beast, which were as black as a bat’s, continuously flapped in the air.

They did not immediately descend toward the desolate mountain.

“Open.”

Song Siyuan pressed a hand to the stony ground of the desolate mountain and exclaimed with a calm expression. Distinct cracks began to appear on the rocky mountain face, spreading out from his palm.

“Krak krak krak!”

Gigantic rocks shattered as Song Siyuan’s arm was like a drill that stabbed deep into the mountain.

After a loud bang, a deep, dark cave appeared at the top of the mountain. Ku Lu, withered, ghastly, and trapped inside of a cage made from cold iron, appeared from inside.

Blood stained chains penetrated Ku Lu’s shoulder blades and shackled him to the cage. Large steel nails pinned his feet to the ground so that he would not be able to move.

The stone cave shattered and Song Siyuan picked up the prison, which was as large as a house, and put it on top of the desolate mountain.

“Aooooo!”

Ku Lu, seeing the open sky once more and noticing Ku Luo, Ka Meng, and Duo Luo under the night sky, became angry instead of joyful. He actually howled madly at the trio.

“Uncle Ku Lu!”

Upon seeing his terrible visage, Ka Meng and Duo Luo cried out softly in the language of Nether Realm with wet eyes.

Ku Luo’s body shuddered as he stared blankly at his younger brother, examining the terrible wounds on his body and his horrible appearance.

He didn’t need a second look to know that his brother had been inhumanly tortured during his imprisonment.

The ghostfire in Ku Luo’s eyes stared darkly at Song Yu, Xie Yaoyang, and Nie Yun. The hatred behind it was obvious.

“Hmph!” Nie Yun, the Nie Family patriarch, smiled coldly under Ku Luo’s gaze. He obviously did not care about Ku Luo’s hatred.

“Aooooo!” Ku Lu cried out yet again.

Qin Lie lowered his head and noticed that there was a bright silver collar locked around his long, thin neck. The collar shone with a cold metallic luster and would constrict every time Ku Lu tried to speak.

Ku Luo obviously had something to say since he had howled twice upon seeing Ku Luo and the others.

However, the collar would immediately constrict when he howled, stopping him from uttering words no matter how much he tried. It was as if someone were gripping his neck.

“The three Profound Yin Nine Leaf Lotuses!”

Nie Yun’s eyes were cold. He frowned, staring at Ku Luo on the Spirit Hunting Beast. He looked as if he wanted this to be over with as soon as possible and did not wish to waste any more time.

“What do you mean by this?” Qin Lie asked with a cold expression.

Ku Lu did not have such a collar around his neck when they last saw him. Now that he was about to be released, Profound Heaven Alliance had actually put a collar on him, preventing him from even being able to speak.

“We can see that he is not willing to exchange his own life for the Profound Yin Nine Leaf Lotuses. To prevent him from disrupting this exchange, we had no choice but to prevent him from speaking.” Song Yu opened his arms and expressed his helplessness. Then he narrowed his eyes and pointed at Ku Luo. “Talk to him. Tell him we need to complete this exchange as soon as possible to avoid being noticed and attracting unnecessary trouble.”

“Ngggggggh…” Ku Lu struggled on the inside of the cage. His eyes were grim and he seemed like he wanted to say something.

“Qin Lie! Tell them to release the hostage first!” Ku Luo suppressed the manic anger in his heart. His shoulders shook, and it seemed as though wisps of souls were writhing within his eyes, burning with ghostfire.

His current appearance was extremely terrifying.

“Release the hostage first.” Qin Lie looked at Song Yu.

“Give us the Profound Yin Nine Leaf Lotuses first!” Nie Han said coldly.

Qin Lie did not look at him. He only looked at Song Yu with a dark expression, exclaiming in a low tone, “Alliance Chief Song!”

“Siyuan, release the hostage first!” Song Yu did not waste time on the matter and waved his hand, taking the lead to show good will.

Seeing that he had spoken, both Nie Yun and Xie Yaoyang no longer said anything.

Under everyone’s gaze, Song Siyuan opened the cage with a key and broke all of the chains around Ku Lu’s shoulder blades as well.

“There you go.” Song Siyuan was candid and he lifted Ku Lu with one hand, throwing him into the sky.

Ku Lu, who had almost exhausted all of his strength, was tossed up into the sky by Song Siyuan. Ku Luo personally rode the Spirit Hunting Beast over to grab him and ignored his furious struggling, forcefully pressing down on him to stop him from acting recklessly.