Chapter 462: Forbidden Power

Many people were discussing, secretly delighted in their hearts.

Entering the Celestial Extinction Mountain Range this time, one never knows what kind of dangers lie ahead, and life could be lost at any moment.

But now, with the strong cultivators from the Purple Mansion and Turquoise Pool watching over them, it was like a reassurance pill for them.

Ji Chen, however, was unconvinced.

In his view, the strong cultivators in those two chariots might indeed be powerful, but they couldn’t care less about the life or death of these loose cultivators, let alone lend a helping hand.

He understood that in this Celestial Extinction Mountain Range, survival depended mainly on oneself.

The reason he followed behind the two major forces, Turquoise Pool and Purple Mansion, was to let them pave the way. If they encountered any demon beasts, those two forces would bear the brunt.

At that time, he only needed to watch from afar and seize the opportunity to continue deeper into the mountains.

Time passed.

Soon, two hours had gone by.

Entering the mountains on foot, their speed was evidently not fast.

In two hours, they only advanced about a hundred miles.

Along the way, they encountered many demon beasts lurking in the mountains and were directly attacked.

But those demon beasts were swiftly cleared by the forces of Turquoise Pool and Purple Mansion at the front, leaving no chance for Ji Chen and the loose cultivators following behind to act.

“Where exactly is the Immortal Treasure? We’ve already delved a hundred miles in; should we continue advancing?”

Finally, someone among the group couldn’t help but furrow their brows and voice this opinion.

The forbidden power here had reached a certain degree of strength, causing their life force to deplete much faster than outside.

Now, staying here for an hour would consume at least a year, or even two, of their lifespan.

And this rate of depletion would only accelerate as they ventured deeper.

It was said that in the deepest part of the Celestial Extinction Mountain Range, the forbidden power was horrifyingly potent, capable of depleting a hundred days in a single breath.

Hardly anyone could survive there for a day without dying of old age.

“Where are we now? Though it’s a hundred miles, it’s still just the outskirts of the Celestial Extinction Mountain Range. If you’re too afraid of exhausting your life force, just turn back and leave.” Someone spoke, seemingly having predicted such an outcome.

“Using spiritual power can resist some of the forbidden power, but it’s not very effective, and unwise as well. Once your spiritual power is exhausted, you’ll be immobile in these mountains!”

“Thankfully, I brought a Great Dao Emperor Artifact to protect my body, isolating some of the forbidden power in the mountains. This slowed the depletion of my life force significantly, or I wouldn’t have dared to come this far.” Someone spoke with relief.

“The Great Dao Emperor Artifact indeed has some protective effect, but it’s quite limited. The forbidden power in the mountains isn’t something that Emperor Level Treasures can block; it will soon lose its effect.”

“Unless you carry immortal objects like the Turquoise Pool and Purple Mansion strong cultivators, you should be prepared to die of old age here.” An elderly loose cultivator said, with white hair and beard.

Even though he was very aged, his power was strong, having reached the Great Emperor Realm or higher, with a lifespan of millennia. Even in this Celestial Extinction Mountain Range, he didn’t need to worry about dying of old age in a short time.

“Hu…”

Listening to their discussions, Ji Chen, mingling in the crowd, maintained steady breathing.

He had long discovered that due to his Hongmeng Body, the speed of life force depletion was much slower than ordinary people.

Even now, having reached a depth of a hundred miles, his life force only depletes less than ten times faster than outside.

This meant he could stay here for an entire day and only consume the equivalent of ten days’ life force, so there was no need to worry.

Of course, this was only the current situation; Ji Chen couldn’t guarantee that as he went deeper, his Hongmeng Body could still withstand the increasingly strong forbidden power in the mountains.

Continuing forward another hundred miles.

At the front, the strong cultivators leading from Purple Mansion and Turquoise Pool paused briefly under a cliff.

Ji Chen and the other loose cultivators were curious, not knowing what had occurred.

“It seems they’ve found an Immortal Elixir.”

Soon, someone who went to investigate brought back this information.

“An Immortal Elixir, huh…”

“Having delved over two hundred miles, this distance indeed warrants the presence of Immortal Elixirs growing here.”

The group discussed, their eyes filled with envy, while also scanning the vicinity in search.

But evidently, these areas had long been searched by the forces of Purple Mansion and Turquoise Pool, with no chance of any leftovers.

“Just following these major forces isn’t a solution. Even if treasures appear in the mountains, we won’t get a chance, let alone a sip of the broth.”

Someone said.

Many agreed with this sentiment, and later, some privately formed alliances, splitting into teams of a few or a dozen, continuing deeper through side paths, trying to detour around Purple Mansion and Turquoise Pool, hoping for gains.

However, only a minority thought this way.

Most, like Ji Chen, chose to continue following behind the two major forces.

This not only avoided many troubles but also ensured that if demon beasts appeared ahead, the two major forces could easily drive them away, without needing these loose cultivators to take risks.

Of course, the main reason was their high aims; the mountain’s Immortal Elixirs evidently didn’t catch their eye.

In this expedition into the Celestial Extinction Mountain Range, most were after the Immortal Treasure, not anything else, so there was no need to venture off the path by themselves.

Soon, they continued moving forward.

Having reached a region where treasures might be found everywhere in the mountains.

Hence, during their journey, everyone searched while advancing, walking and stopping, which greatly elongated the group.

Ji Chen always stayed at the rear and didn’t rush to the front.

“Run!”

Suddenly, chaos erupted up ahead, and looking ahead, those cultivators at the front had inexplicably turned back, their faces filled with panic.

“What happened?”

Someone stopped a fleeing middle-aged man and asked, wanting to know what was happening ahead.

“There are demon beasts ahead, too terrifying. It’s the legendary ‘Immortal Demon Flood Dragon,’ and with a single roar, it reduced over a hundred strong cultivators from Purple Mansion and Turquoise Pool to ashes on the spot!”