An invasion from the Abyss? I, a demonic cultivator, laughed.

Chapter 153 Pollutants

Hearing the voice behind him, Chu Xiu's expression shifted slightly, and he turned around to look.

About two or three thousand meters behind him, a strange creature was suspended in mid-air.

At first glance, it looks like a giant fly magnified millions of times, but upon closer inspection, one can see that this "fly" has a hard exoskeleton and extremely sharp serrated mouthparts, like a small flying fortress nearly ten meters long.

Chu Xiu's expression hardened, and almost instantly he was certain that this was a creature of the general rank!

On this strange flying insect, several people were standing or sitting, observing Chu Xiu from afar.

This made Chu Xiu frown slightly, but he didn't say anything and turned to continue cleaning up the remaining water ghosts.

Seeing that he did not respond, the flying insect began to slowly approach him. When it was still dozens of meters away from Chu Xiu, the person on the insect jumped off.

"I never expected to see the Dark King here."

The elderly man at the head of the group clasped his hands in a salute and said, "I wonder if you have also come here regarding the whereabouts of the military region? We heard the commotion here while searching in the sky, so we came to investigate. We hope we have not disturbed you."

Chu Xiu did not reply, but turned around and carefully examined the group, the spiritual light of his Demonic Eyes flashing in his eyes.

Although the level of the Ghostly Eyes was no longer sufficient, one could still roughly sense its strength unless the other party deliberately concealed it.

There were nine people in total. One woman and one man were relatively young, and they looked only slightly older than him. The other seven were all men. Apart from the old man who had spoken to him earlier, they were all middle-aged men in their thirties or forties. They had eagle-like eyes and exuded a sharp and decisive aura. They were obviously all highly skilled fighters with extensive combat experience.

Three of them reached the General rank: the old man was level 9, the other two middle-aged men were level 7 and level 5 respectively, and the others were all level 9 of the Fierce rank.

Judging from the aura sensed by divine sense, it was even more obvious that the old man's aura alone was stronger than that of the other two generals combined.

"Just call me Chen Ce," Chu Xiu said after a pause.

These nine people are not to be underestimated. Although Chu Xiu is not afraid, he does not want to cause trouble with them for no reason.

"My name is Huang Guohua," the old man said with a smile, then pointed to the two young men beside him, "This is my young master, and this is Miss Su from the Third Abyss Research University in the capital."

Chu Xiu glanced at the two of them and nodded slightly.

Next, everyone briefly exchanged information.

These nine people, like Chu Xiu, came here to explore because they saw the opportunity in the military region. After all, this was the only place in the Corpse Demon City where the overall threat level reached the general level.

Other cities or regions generally have a lower danger rating than the Corpse City in the Awakening Trial. After all, the Corpse King, as the final boss of the Awakening Trial, directly absorbs the power of the Blood Sea, and the level of pollution is incomparable to that of ordinary cities.

However, the specific purposes of the nine people were still somewhat different.

The girl from the Third Research University in the capital is named Su Jinyu. She has an oval face and fair skin.

Her appearance wasn't particularly outstanding, and she didn't dress up at all; her long black hair was simply tied in a ponytail at the back of her head. But she had an intellectual and capable air about her, which made Chu Xiu think she was much prettier than most internet celebrities, so he couldn't help but take a second look.

Beside her was a middle-aged man of general rank 7, whom she called "Uncle Liu," a full-time bodyguard belonging to the research institute.

There is no such thing as an Awakened University or a Supernatural College Entrance Examination in this world. After all, every Awakened is special and there is not much to teach them. Compared to traditional cultivators who need the guidance and inheritance of a master, Awakened are more like self-employed individuals.

In the early stages, there will be some government subsidies, but in the later stages, it will only be a matter of exchanging favors.

However, while there are no universities specifically for training Awakened Ones, there are universities dedicated to the study of the Abyss. The students there are all Awakened Ones and are required to master a great deal of knowledge about the Abyss. They are responsible for researching various superior beings, ancient cultures, and extraordinary technologies within the Abyss.

These individuals will receive special government subsidies, making them suitable for awakened individuals who are not skilled in combat. However, it is very difficult to enter this field; only those with exceptional talent can do so. After all, the government's money is not free; investments need to yield returns.

“A researcher at the level 9 of the Ferocious Rank must have a high status, but he doesn’t look much older than me.”

Although it is easy for Awakened Ones to fake their appearance, not to mention rejuvenating, some even turn into Cthulhu-like tentacle monsters, Chu Xiu's divine sense could detect that the girl was very young.

"Looks like another genius."

As for the young man called "Young Master," he was no ordinary person either. His name was Xue Li, and he had come here specifically for training.

Although he is already at level 9 of the Ferocious Rank and no longer needs to kill monsters to level up, he still needs to improve his mental fortitude and combat instincts through a lot of battles.

These children from the upper classes, unlike Chu Xiu who fought their way up, had a lot of high-quality equipment in the early stages, so their leveling up was almost always smooth sailing. This was fine in normal times, but when they encountered evenly matched battles, their lack of combat experience and mental deficiencies would be greatly exposed.

There is a huge difference between regular practice and actual combat.

Therefore, their parents would let them fight against monsters of the same level under protection in order to accumulate combat experience as much as possible to make up for this.

Only after making thorough preparations should you challenge the fierce-level trial.

After all, the Fierce Trial is not easy, with a pass rate of less than 50%. This also takes into account that most people would never dare to challenge the Fierce Trial in their entire lives, and every challenger is fully prepared.

As the trial level increases, the price of the escape item will rise exponentially, and the side effects of failing the trial will also increase significantly. Therefore, concentrating your efforts to complete the trial in one go is the best option.

To prevent any accidents from happening to the young man during his training, his parents prepared a level 9 general as a top expert for him, as well as a well-trained mercenary group called the "Fang Squad".

In addition to protecting the safety of the youth, they also develop suitable training plans for them and scout out suitable combat targets.

"It's really great to have a good background, with so many experts to help you level up," Chu Xiu couldn't help but sigh to himself.

Moreover, judging from the two men's respectful demeanor and the undisguised arrogance in the young man's eyes, Chu Xiu could sense that this guy's background was likely even greater than Ye Junlin's! He wouldn't be surprised if he had a Heroic Spirit-level father.

Having no interest in dealing with these two, Chu Xiu, after perfunctorily inquiring about the situation, dismissed them, saying, "Since you've come for the military region, then go and find it yourselves."

As his impolite words fell, the young man was clearly displeased, but he was no spoiled brat. He simply stood there silently, while the "Butler Huang" beside him cupped his hands and said, "Student Chen, why be so formal? We awakened ones should help each other out there."

"Does Chen have any clues about the location of the military region?"

Chu Xiu shook his head.

The old man immediately continued, "It seems that this military region is an extremely rare hidden base built in the mountains."

"When I was young, I also served in the army. Some special military bases that store valuable equipment sometimes have mountains hollowed out to build them in order to avoid enemy attacks. They are extremely difficult to find from the outside. Moreover, these shelters will definitely be further hidden in order to resist the apocalypse. It would probably take a lot of effort to find them with the naked eye."

"However, I do have a solution."

"Student Chen may not know this, but the places where abyssal creatures gather are usually filled with a lot of [pollution]. In other words, as long as we follow the traces of [pollution], we can find our target."

"I see signs of pollution in the lake behind you, classmate."

The white-haired old man said with a smile.

Chu Xiu found it somewhat amusing; this guy had gone on and on, but in the end, he still wanted to take the stuff from him.

However, the other party had the confidence to do so. A fully equipped general-level awakened being who had cultivated all skills and attributes to their peak was terrifying, far beyond what Chu Xiu could compare to the Baron Blood Angel he had encountered before.

Judging from the old man's age, he was probably among the first to enter during the Abyss invasion. Even if he didn't use any karma points, he would still be a force to be reckoned with after decades of cultivation.

Although Chu Xiu had no intention of clashing with the group, he naturally wouldn't back down either. He simply pointed to his lower body and said nonchalantly, "I was here first, so the things here naturally belong to me." Hearing this, the old man still smiled and said, "Young man, you misunderstand. We have no intention of taking your spoils; we just want to trace the [contamination]."

"How about this? Everything found here belongs to you, and we'll just observe it. Is that alright?"

"As a knowledgeable and brilliant researcher, Miss Su may be able to offer a different perspective."

After hearing the old man's words, Chu Xiu didn't insist any further and nodded in agreement. He knew that this was their only lead, and the other side wouldn't back down easily.
Meanwhile, the vengeful ghost had already hunted down most of the water ghosts wandering in the blood-red lake, and discovered a huge "tumor" in the center of the lake. This tumor had many passageways, which seemed to be the water ghosts' lair.

Chu Xiu's mind raced, and two figures burst forth from the dense forest, plunging into the lake! It was the resurrected Baron and the Blood Angel!

The two figures flashed by so quickly that they startled the other nine people. These two resurrected corpses were extremely fast and were clearly of general-level combat strength!
A look of surprise flashed in Xue Li's eyes, and the arrogance in his eyes immediately diminished. The white-haired old man narrowed his eyes, and a look of shock also flashed in his somewhat cloudy old eyes.

"Although I had heard that the Dark Night King was incredibly talented, not only possessing immense physical strength but also commanding a massive army of summoned creatures, it seems that he is even more terrifying than described!"

However, the old man was not too worried. He had absolute confidence in his strength, which came from his daily and uninterrupted hard work.

In his eyes, how could a student who had only been awakened for a month and a half, no matter how talented, compare to his decades of accumulation?

If a conflict were to occur, he was confident that he could kill the Night King in a short time!

Of course, he still did not want to have a conflict with Chu Xiu. Although it was extremely difficult to investigate and kill someone in the abyss, he did not want to provoke a genius of this caliber without cause.

While the old man was pondering, Chu Xiu also completed his search.

The two resurrected corpses completely tore open the water ghost's lair and slaughtered all the remaining water ghosts inside.

At the end, there was also a fierce-rank elite water ghost queen responsible for reproduction. After killing her, the enormous energy greatly accelerated the resurrection progress of both of them, and two more fierce ghosts were born.

Inside the water ghost queen's belly, Chu Xiu found a strange object covered in a large amount of mucus.

At his signal, a vengeful ghost materialized and floated up, its sharp claws holding a mass of unidentified objects that emitted a strong stench.

The smell was like a mixture of rotten food and stomach acid fermenting for days. The moment it appeared, everyone present frowned, and Xue Li and Su Jinyu couldn't help but cover their noses.

Chu Xiu examined the object for a moment, then flicked it lightly. The Azure Poison Corpse Flame climbed to its edge. As the flames burned, the outer layer of viscous fluid slowly melted, and the thing inside, which looked like a stomach, was burned open, revealing a clump of mixed yellow-green material.

Under the scorching heat of the flames, the stench became even stronger. Xue Li looked as if he was about to vomit and retreated nearly a hundred meters. Su Jinyu also looked terrible, but at least she was still able to stand still and stare intently at the thing in the ghost's hand.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Chu Xiu stepped forward expressionlessly, calmly reached out and grabbed something from the deepest part of the yellow-green mixture, then put it into the lake and shook it.

Soon, a long, thin object appeared before his eyes—it was a long, thin finger that was entirely black!
The finger was extremely sturdy, and the nails were a strange dark purple. As the mucus that enveloped it was washed away, Chu Xiu felt waves of nausea wash over him.

"Is this what pollution is?"

Fortunately, his mental resistance is now incredibly high, even surpassing most awakened generals, which is why he can look at the finger as if nothing happened.

Soon, information about the relevant items appeared before Chu Xiu's eyes.

[Oswell the Blood Demon's Finger]

[Description: Continuously emits pollution in the surrounding area; long-term exposure can cause uncontrolled distortions.]

Blood Demon's Fingers?

Chu Xiu's heart stirred slightly; he still had a Blood Demon's tongue and stomach in his storage space.

Although they are not the same Blood Demon.

After examining the area for a while and finding no clues, Chu Xiu handed his finger to the others.

Everyone looked at each one in turn, but they were all completely confused. In the end, they could only look at Su Jinyu together.

"Blood Demons are advanced beings born from blood. However, Blood Demons born from different blood types vary greatly in strength, rank, and even appearance and talent."

“Since this place is the territory of the ‘Boundless Blood Pool,’ if this Blood Demon was born from the blood at the core of the Blood Pool, its rank should be extremely high! At the very least, it should be at the King rank, and it might even reach the Heroic Spirit rank!”

Su Jinyu's words made everyone's expressions become even more serious. The Boundless Blood Pool is an ancient god, an existence born from the blood of a god. How could its rank be low?

"Can we pinpoint the location of the military region based on this?" Manager Huang asked.

Su Jinyu circled the lake a few times, and after thinking for a while, shook her head regretfully: "It probably won't work. This seems to be an independent [pollutant]."

"Okay." Everyone was somewhat disappointed.

"So, can you give my things back now?"

At this moment, Chu Xiu's calm voice rang out.

The old man glanced at him, but before he could speak, Su Jinyu jogged over and returned the finger.

This made the old man shake his head helplessly. He thought to himself that although the girl looked more mature than her peers, he could still tell that she was a naive college student. She was too honest and handed over an item of considerable value so easily. He had originally wanted to find an excuse to keep it.

After all, this is their only clue at the moment, and as a special item, it would have a high trading value if brought back.

However, he had no intention of causing any more trouble at this point, so he turned around and led everyone away on flying insects.

It seems they are looking for other Blood Demon parts in the vicinity, hoping to find some clues.

After the flying insect completely disappeared, Chu Xiu looked down at his fingers again, a thoughtful expression on his face.

He thought of the tongue.

"As a fellow Blood Demon, perhaps it might know some information?"

"I just don't know if my tongue will still be able to reveal secrets after the awakening trial ends."

Chu Xiu glanced at the sky; the sun was gradually setting, and it was almost evening.

Next, he continued to search for traces of other pollutants in the vicinity, but searching at night was obviously more difficult. He searched around for a long time without finding anything, so he simply gave up and found a cave to rest and recover his strength.

At midnight, a familiar restlessness suddenly came from the storage space.

Chu Xiu smiled, raised his hand, and a sticky tongue fell to the ground.

The instant it appeared, it let out an impatient shriek:

"I sensed it! You found that beast Oswell's body!"

"Give it to me! Give it to me! I'll trade any secret you want for it!"

(End of this chapter)