Chapter 757 - 753: Ferocious Beast Confronts the Holy Land Secret Sect

Chapter 757: Chapter 753: Ferocious Beast Confronts the Holy Land Secret Sect

Lin Hao closed his eyes, his mind seemingly wandering far away.

A peculiar glint flashed in Xia Yunpeng’s eyes.

’At the Spirit Transformation Realm, one’s Divine Soul could traverse a thousand miles in an instant. At the Sealed Martial Realm, it was naturally even more terrifying.’

But this was the Dragon Transformation Ancient Realm, and no one dared use their Divine Soul to scout the path ahead.

Because no one knew what lurked in the depths of the Dragon Transformation Ancient Realm.

’If Lin Hao is really using his Divine Soul right now, then he’s just far too audacious.’

Just as Xia Yunpeng was lost in thought, Lin Hao’s eyes snapped open, his expression turning grave.

"The Holy Lands and Secret Sects of the Huang Yang Continent have merged."

Lin Hao spoke, delivering a piece of news that shocked everyone.

The legacies of the Holy Lands and Secret Sects stretched back for thousands of years. Powers with such deep foundations would absolutely never merge unless they had met an insurmountable opponent.

’What in the world has happened in this realm?!’

Everyone desperately wanted to know the answer.

"A thousand miles away, a single fierce beast is holding them in a standoff."

Lin Hao revealed an even more staggering piece of information.

This simple sentence shook everyone to their core.

’The Holy Lands and the Secret Sects merged because of a single fierce beast?!’

’Just how terrifying must that beast be?!’

’An ancient, ferocious beast—and very likely pure-blooded!’

Everyone’s expressions changed as they sucked in a sharp breath.

Xia Yunpeng, however, stared at Lin Hao in utter shock.

’To perceive something a thousand miles away, Lin Hao must have used his Divine Soul.’

’But for such a terrifying being to be unable to detect his Divine Soul... doesn’t that prove Lin Hao is even more terrifying than the beast?!’

"Boss, what should we do?" Bai Yu swallowed hard, his mouth still feeling parched.

"It looks good down there. We’ll rest for two days and then decide," Lin Hao said, pointing to the ravine below.

Snapping back to their senses, the group looked down and saw that the mist that had recently dispersed was now gathering again, becoming incredibly dense.

"What dense miasma! Will we even survive if we go down there?" Xia Yunhai spoke up.

As a Sealed Martial Realm expert, he possessed powerful regenerative abilities and had recovered from his earlier exertions long ago.

"Who told you this was miasma?" Lin Hao glanced at him.

The others were taken aback as well.

The natural energy in the Dragon Transformation Ancient Realm was dense, but miasma was just as prevalent.

Poisonous creatures thrived where the miasma was thick, and if one were to mistake it for natural energy and absorb it, even a Sealed Martial Realm expert would have a difficult time dealing with the consequences.

Thus, they had been carefully controlling their respiration throughout their journey.

They had become even more cautious after seeing the dense mist here disperse only to return, as this was a classic sign of heavy miasma.

It indicated the presence of some terrifyingly venomous creature below.

So, upon hearing Lin Hao declare this wasn’t miasma, they were naturally stunned.

However, Xi Chenghua and the others immediately relaxed their breathing, having unconditional faith in Lin Hao’s words.

They even took a deep breath at the same time.

"Such dense natural energy!"

"Not only is it dense, it’s unbelievably pure! This is on the verge of becoming Innate True Essence!"

"The energy is converging on its own, evolving into True Essence... There’s a Gathering Essence Array below!"

The three of them, Xi Chenghua included, were Sealed Martial Realm experts, after all. Experienced and knowledgeable, each in turn identified an extraordinary aspect of what lay below.

"Correct. This Gathering Essence Array was completed just over three months ago, left behind by the previous sect. Now, it’s a windfall for us." Lin Hao nodded, then led the way, leaping into the ravine.

The others leaped down after him.

The allure of natural energy on the verge of evolving into Innate True Essence was immense for any Martial Artist.

The ravine was over a thousand feet deep. The further they descended, the denser and purer the natural energy became.

Once the eight of them landed at the bottom, Xia Yunpeng couldn’t wait to begin absorbing the energy and cultivating.

Xia Yunhai glanced at Lin Hao’s group. After a moment of hesitation, he ultimately couldn’t resist the temptation and also began to cultivate.

The rest of the group, however, did not move. They were waiting for Lin Hao’s command.

Lin Hao’s brow twitched. A strange feeling washed over him—it seemed there was the aura of a living creature down here.

His eyes sharp as lightning, Lin Hao scanned their surroundings.

The area was filled with crumbling walls and ruins. Other than the pure natural energy and the auras of his own group, there was no trace of any living thing.

His search was not entirely fruitless, however.

Lin Hao had discovered the Gathering Essence Array hidden underground.

Furthermore, in the very center of this area—the core of the Gathering Essence Array—Lin Hao sensed the aura of Spiritual Artifacts.

It seemed the living aura he had sensed moments ago had emanated from this spot.

Lin Hao’s eyes lit up. ’Could a Spiritual Artifact have gained its own consciousness?!’

With this thought, Lin Hao investigated more carefully. Though he located several Spiritual Artifacts, he couldn’t find any that possessed sentience.

He had a mind to unearth the Spiritual Artifacts, but they were integral to the Gathering Essence Array, so he didn’t act rashly.

Suddenly, Lin Hao’s pupils constricted.

’This area was sunk into the ground. Logically, everything should have been reduced to dust, so why are there still ruins? And why is the Gathering Essence Array still perfectly intact?’

Doubt flickered in Lin Hao’s mind.

It was all rather illogical.

Just then, Xi Chenghua also spoke up, voicing his own confusion.

He could only vaguely sense the Gathering Essence Array’s existence, but he could tell something was off. The ruins shouldn’t still be standing.

"I’m going to modify the Gathering Essence Array. You all can start cultivating," Lin Hao announced, then got to work.

In truth, Lin Hao harbored far more doubts than they did.

Setting aside those questions for now, he also found it strange that they hadn’t seen a single Spiritual Artifact since entering the Dragon Transformation Ancient Realm, yet several had appeared here.

But regardless, improving his companions’ cultivation was an absolute necessity. So, Lin Hao temporarily suppressed his doubts and began to modify the Gathering Essence Array.

This Gathering Essence Array may have seemed sophisticated, but it held no secrets from Lin Hao.

Lin Hao made his move. He traced patterns on the ground that seemed to do nothing, but he was actually altering the underground Spiritual Artifacts, accelerating the rate at which the array converted gathered energy into Innate True Essence.

Xi Chenghua and the others watched as, following Lin Hao’s actions, the ambient energy—already nearly indistinguishable from Innate True Essence—began to swirl and grow even purer.

However, this effect was confined to a single area.

"There’s a limited number of Spiritual Artifacts below, so I can’t modify the whole array. You all should enter this area to cultivate. I’ll see if I can figure out a way to modify their section as well."

The "they" Lin Hao spoke of were, of course, Xia Yunpeng and Xia Yunhai.

The two had been impatient from the moment they landed, so their position was near the edge of the ravine, some distance away from the others.

"They only care for themselves, Young Master. You don’t need to go to this trouble for them," Zhao Yuanzhong said, glaring at the pair with undisguised disgust.

Lin Hao, however, shook his head. "They may act without benevolence, but I cannot act without righteousness."

Zhao Yuanzhong opened his mouth to speak again but was silenced by a look from Xi Chenghua and Lao Xuexin.

After that, the three of them, along with Xu Zihao and Bai Yu, settled down cross-legged in the designated area and began to cultivate.

Lin Hao then got back to work.

Fifteen minutes later, Lin Hao sighed.

There were too few Spiritual Artifacts, and he had no other materials on hand. Further modifications were impossible.

"The Dragon Transformation Ancient Realm is perilous. Since I cannot modify it again, then I have no other choice." Lin Hao stared at the two men, and his hands began to move.