Chapter 611: The Underground Monster—Tai Sui

A majestic, heavy, and extremely oppressive aura surged out from the tunnel.

The instant this aura appeared, Zhaang Ye felt as if he were being watched by a beast from the Wilderness. His body suddenly went stiff, and the hairs all over him stood on end.

Zhaang Ye stared at the tunnel, his heart filled with shock and doubt. ‘This aura is as heavy as the earth and as solid as a mountain, yet within its weight, there is vitality. Could this be the aura of the Earth Origin? No, that can’t be right. How could the aura of the Earth Origin be so oppressive, so terrifying?’

The Fire Spirit spoke up, “Master, you’re right. This aura, as heavy as the earth and as solid as a mountain, is precisely the aura of the Earth Origin! I faintly sensed it even before the tunnel opened.

“Judging by this aura, the Earth Origin has already gained consciousness, and its power is immense. It is precisely because its power is so immense that its aura feels so oppressive.”

A thought struck Zhaang Ye, and he said, “Fire Spirit, you mentioned earlier in the Sword Monarch Hall that you discovered something interesting. Was the interesting thing you were talking about the Earth Origin?”

The Fire Spirit said, “Exactly!”

Zhaang Ye’s heart sank. He gave a bitter smile and said, “This is trouble. We can barely handle one of the Sword Monarch’s clones. If we add a powerful Earth Origin to the mix, we won’t even have a fighting chance.”

The Fire Spirit giggled. “Master, you’re worrying too much. Just now, when I used my full Spiritual Sense to perceive the Sword Monarch’s clone’s movements, I happened to come into contact with a trace of the Earth Origin’s aura. I sense that the Earth Origin seems to hold some hostility toward the Sword Monarch’s clone.”

Zhaang Ye’s eyes lit up, and he was about to ask more. But just then, the purple-bearded middle-aged man waved his arm, and a faint Sword Gang, like a flexible rope, shot toward Zhaang Ye, Flower King, and Shui Daimai like a bolt of lightning.

Seeing the Sword Gang, Zhaang Ye’s heart sank again, and his scalp tingled. ‘A Sword Gang is Supreme Yang and supremely hard; it should only travel in a straight line, making it very difficult to bend. But the Sword Gang this purple-bearded man released is as supple as a rope. He has clearly reached a state where he can alternate between hard and soft at will. This level of Control Power is truly terrifying…’

Zhaang Ye knew how terrifying this Sword Gang was, so he simply stood perfectly still, allowing it to wrap around his body.

When Flower King and Shui Daimai saw the approaching Sword Gang, their expressions changed simultaneously. Their figures blurred into afterimages as they shot backward. But the Sword Gang was incredibly profound; they had barely retreated three feet before it coiled around them like a spirit serpent, binding them tightly.

A Sword Gang contains Gold Essence Qi and is Supreme Yang and supremely hard. Touching even a speck of it should cause one’s entire body to explode. Yet when this Sword Gang wrapped around them, they only felt an icy cold sensation; even their clothes were undamaged. This terrifying Control Power made Flower King and Shui Daimai gasp in unison.

The purple-bearded middle-aged man took in all three of their reactions.

The purple-bearded middle-aged man’s expression was calm, but he was thinking to himself, ‘From this series of tests, this boy, Zhaang Ye, is a top-tier choice in terms of Comprehension, physical body, and willpower. Best of all, Zhaang Ye also practices Saber Technique, and his foundation is quite solid.’

‘I, this Sword Monarch, will conduct one final test. If Zhaang Ye’s luck is good enough, I will use an Ancient Secret Technique to seize his body and return to the Barbaric Land.’

A fervent glint appeared in the purple-bearded middle-aged man’s eyes as he waved his arm. With the wave, the bodies of Zhaang Ye, Flower King, and Shui Daimai felt light, and they flew into the tunnel with him.

Upon entering the tunnel, Zhaang Ye felt his body grow heavy as an immense force pressed in from all directions. Sensing this power, he was secretly horrified. ‘This terrifying force must be coming from the Earth Origin, right? Judging from this power, the Earth Origin’s strength is definitely no less than that of the purple-bearded middle-aged man!’

SWOOSH! While Zhaang Ye was still reeling in shock, the purple-bearded middle-aged man had already flown four or five *li* with the three of them, then slowly landed on a massive rock.

In front of the massive rock was a huge clearing, a full ten *li* in circumference. Terrible currents of air swirled above the clearing, as if a colossal ancient beast were taking heavy breaths.

Zhaang Ye, Flower King, and Shui Daimai all fixed their gazes on the clearing. None of them were ordinary people; they could keenly sense that a terrifying monster existed beneath it.

“WUUUUUUUUUU—”

The arrival of the purple-bearded man, Zhaang Ye, Flower King, and Shui Daimai seemed to have displeased the monster underground. The air currents swirling over the clearing grew violent. One current, as thick as a water bucket, condensed into a sharp, gigantic sword and, in an instant, stabbed toward the purple-bearded middle-aged man.

As the sword thrust down, the void actually emitted crisp KRAKA-KRAKA sounds, and large swathes of it shattered like glass. Standing on the massive rock, Zhaang Ye felt wisps of the aura cutting into his body like sharp blades. He had no choice but to circulate his Celestial River Righteous Qi, forming a thick layer of Gang Qi outside his body to protect himself.

A grave expression appeared on the purple-bearded middle-aged man’s face. His eyes locked onto the gigantic sword, and he suddenly flicked his sleeve. With the flick, a Sword Gang, barely visible to the naked eye, tore through the air and slammed into the Long Sword.

DING!

The Sword Gang and the Long Sword clashed, instantly letting out the ringing sound of metal on metal. Following this crisp, clear sound, both the Sword Gang and the Long Sword vanished into nothingness.

PFFT PFFT PFFT PFFT PFFT—

The purple-bearded middle-aged man had just shattered the gigantic sword when dozens of Qi Swords suddenly shot out from the void. These Qi Swords were golden-yellow, like golden Long Swords shooting toward him!

‘The aura of earth, the aura of earth! These Qi Swords contain the aura of earth, making their attacks both incredibly sharp and incredibly heavy!’ Zhaang Ye understood how formidable these Qi Swords were with a single glance.

The purple-bearded middle-aged man’s expression grew even graver. He stood motionless, flicking his two sleeves repeatedly.

The purple-bearded man was truly worthy of being the Sword Monarch’s clone. Every minute movement of his arms, every slight tremor of his sleeves, contained profound mystery. One terrifying Sword Gang after another shot out from his sleeves, intercepting each Qi Sword no matter how fast it came or how powerful it was.

BOOM!

The purple-bearded middle-aged man flicked his sleeve one last time, shattering a Qi Sword, but he himself was forced back three or four steps, a faint greenish-blue tinge appearing on his face. His gaze fixed on the ground below as he slowly said, “Old friend, I, this Sword Monarch, need your help with something. Come on out.”

Zhaang Ye, Flower King, and Shui Daimai all stared intently at the ground.

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE—

The ground suddenly began to shake as if in an earthquake. Before the four of them, the ten-*li*-wide clearing suddenly cracked apart, and a mountain-sized, ochre-colored ball of flesh slowly squeezed its way out of the ground.

As the ochre-colored ball of flesh appeared, an immense aura blasted out in all directions. The ground instantly shattered, and unfathomably deep fissures spread out wildly.

The purple-bearded middle-aged man snorted. His body trembled slightly, and a powerful aura shot to the sky, firmly blocking the terrifying aura of the ochre ball of flesh.

Zhaang Ye stared at the bizarre ball of flesh from a distance and asked inwardly, ‘Fire Spirit, what in the world is this giant ball of flesh? Could it be the Earth Origin?’

The Fire Spirit chuckled. “It is the Earth Origin! This ball of flesh is actually the body condensed by the Earth Origin. You humans can call it Tai Sui.”

“Tai Sui!”

Zhaang Ye repeated the name, then continued to ask, “How strong is this Tai Sui?”

The Fire Spirit pondered for a moment before saying, “According to the memories left behind by the Phoenix Race, Tai Sui’s combat power is extremely formidable. It can easily move hills and use giant rocks to attack its enemies. It can also turn the earth into countless sharp swords to attack opponents at any time. But the most terrifying thing is that it can also control the dust in the air, make it enter an opponent’s body, and then cause the dust to explode from within.

“Besides its powerful attacks, Tai Sui’s body is just a ball of flesh, impervious to any strike. Even a Sword Gang from a True Dao Expert would find it difficult to harm.”

“Furthermore, its Recovery Power is incredibly strong. Even if its body were shattered into a thousand or ten thousand pieces, it could reform. As the body of the Earth Origin, if it can’t defeat an enemy, it can easily escape through the ground…”

Listening to the Fire Spirit’s explanation, Zhaang Ye was secretly astonished. He had sensed Tai Sui’s formidability from its aura, but he hadn’t expected it to be *this* formidable.

RUMBLE!

Tai Sui’s enormous body finally emerged completely from the ground. The creature looked to be a full forty *zhang* tall, wreathed in streams of ochre light. Waves of suffocating pressure emanated from its massive form. This pressure rolled out in waves, one after another, making the ground tremble.

Tai Sui emerged from the ground, and a magnificent voice boomed, “Sword-Cut Water, what are you doing here? I am thoroughly annoyed and have no time to entertain you.”

Tai Sui spoke with no courtesy, its voice rumbling like rolling thunder.

Hearing Tai Sui’s words, Zhaang Ye’s mind stirred. ‘Sword-Cut Water… it seems that’s the Sword Monarch’s real name. And based on Tai Sui’s tone, it seems extremely displeased with Sword-Cut Water. What exactly is the relationship between them?’

While Zhaang Ye was secretly speculating, the purple-bearded middle-aged man, Sword-Cut Water, stared coldly at Tai Sui and said, “Old friend, you’ve stayed underground for long years and have faintly absorbed a trace of the Earth Vein’s aura, allowing you to see a person’s luck. Now, take a look at the luck of these three juniors for me.”

Tai Sui let out a muffled grunt and rumbled, “Looking at another’s luck is tantamount to divining Celestial Secrets and leaking Celestial Secrets. You’d better find someone else for that, Sword-Cut Water. I absolutely refuse.”

The purple-bearded middle-aged man gave a cold smile. “Tai Sui, you dare defy my command?”

Tai Sui fell silent, its immense aura locked tightly onto the purple-bearded man. A world-shattering battle could break out between the two great experts at any moment.

Sensing the conflict between Tai Sui and the purple-bearded man, Zhaang Ye was overjoyed and cheered inwardly, ‘Fight, come on, fight!’

The Fire Spirit suddenly said, “They won’t fight. Master, I sense that this Tai Sui is bound by a powerful Prohibition. It doesn’t dare fight Sword-Cut Water. Otherwise, Sword-Cut Water could activate the Prohibition at any time and make Tai Sui suffer.”