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

Chapter 263 Survivors

Logically speaking, it should be more difficult to improve one's strength as one progresses.

Especially since they've all become Heroic Spirits, they shouldn't get much experience from killing these General and King-level monsters.

But why does Chu Xiu's strength seem to be growing much, much, much faster than mine?
Is this reasonable?

Jiang Miaoyin couldn't help but ask, "Senior, how come you seem to get so much stronger every time you go into seclusion? Do Awakened Heroic Spirits level up so quickly?"

“You’re overthinking it,” Chu Xiu said without turning his head. “I’ve already mastered these skills; it’s just that I haven’t encountered an opponent worthy of using them before.”

Jiang Miaoyin said "Oh," but then felt something was off. If Chu Xiu had this supernatural power all along, wouldn't he have smashed the domain deep within the Soul Palace long ago? Why use the ghost army to slowly wear him down?
However, her doubts were fleeting, and she quickly and excitedly went forward to help Chu Xiu tidy up.

Jiang Miaoyin didn't care about other people's secrets; she only cared whether she had a share of the scattered Yin Water!
The two acted quickly, and soon they had gathered all the Yin Water. Chu Xiu's ghost army also evolved once again.

In seven days, four more ghost generals were born!

However, just as Chu Xiu was about to continue hunting, he suddenly heard a low hum coming from afar.

His expression changed, and he pulled Jiang Miaoyin aside: "Here we go again."

Jiang Miaoyin immediately understood. She sensed the surrounding chaos and pointed in a direction. The two flew three or four thousand meters and saw a recessed opening in the stone wall at a height of a hundred meters. They skillfully crawled in, extinguished their protective oil lamps, and then concealed all their presence.

Although the props were gone, the dense Yin energy immediately began to erode their bodies, but as kings, they could withstand it for a short time without much trouble.

The low hum grew louder and louder, gradually turning into the sound of horns from an ancient battlefield, and Chu Xiu felt the earth around him tremble.

A huge shadow enveloped the two of them. Chu Xiu looked up and saw a huge object, whose full appearance was difficult to discern, fly over his head. Its body almost filled the space between the mountains. The view was quite open on the hundred-meter-high stone wall, but he could still only see a part of its side.

It was that terrifying ghost from last time!

During this time, Chu Xiu and his companion also discovered that this ghost was like a king inspecting his territory, wandering around the inner area almost every day.

At this time, all the ghosts will hide their forms to avoid being discovered.

The two had witnessed firsthand how two king-level ghosts, having made too much noise while fighting over a spiritual herb, had their souls destroyed by a single, massive swallowing of them by the giant ghost.

Moreover, just as the previous intelligence indicated, this giant monster, like other leaders, also has its own subordinates.

"Senior, is such a terrifying creature really not a [Heroic Spirit]?" Jiang Miaoyin asked, her face filled with fear.

“No,” Chu Xiu shook his head, “Such a huge form can only be maintained in this blessed land where the Yin energy is incredibly dense. If it were placed outside, it would probably be mostly consumed in just a few years.”

"However, in this blessed land, even those who are not heroes are better than heroes."

Jiang Miaoyin understood Chu Xiu's subtext: Chu Xiu seemed to lack confidence in defeating such an incredibly large ghost.

But that's normal. Jiang Miaoyin thought back to the few heroic spirits she was familiar with and found that none of them dared to say they could defeat this overlord here.

Even without knowing what special abilities this terrifying creature resembling a Kunpeng possesses, it's impossible to guarantee a safe escape.

In fact, Chu Xiu was also pondering this.

"Most of the ghosts in this inner area have been devoured by this giant. If we kill it, it will definitely drop a lot of good stuff! It's even possible that this one will be worth more than all the other ghosts combined!"

"I wonder to what extent this enormous soul body can elevate my ghost army!"

The saying "One whale falls and all things come to life" perfectly describes this situation.

But the question is, how do we do it?
A direct confrontation is definitely not an option. While Chu Xiu's demonic energy condensed weapon is extremely powerful, it would probably be no different from an insect bite in front of a creature of this size.

Remote consumption is also ineffective, as it inhales and exhales massive amounts of Yin energy, and with its [Extreme Yin Body] trait, its body repair ability is probably extremely terrifying.

"Woo-"

Just as Chu Xiu was pondering, the dull horn sounded again, Chu Xiu smelled a stench, and a dark rain fell from the sky in front of him.

"Senior, this monster has started 'excreting' again. These raindrops seem to be impurities in the yin energy. Heavens, so much! Just how much yin energy does this guy absorb in a day?"

Jiang Miaoyin couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

It's only because the Hundred Ghosts Furnace world is special, where the sun shines down with yin energy, and the yin energy of the whole world is sinking downwards, that it can support such a monster.

In the ordinary world, in such an extremely yin place, the yin energy would probably be drained by this monster in less than a month.

However, the two of them were not worried. They had seen this scene three or four times before. This big guy wandered around this inner area, randomly unleashing his power. Each time he excreted his soul, it became more refined. It was through this mode that he continued to strengthen.

Once they leave, they won't return to this area for a while, giving Chu Xiu and his companion some free time to explore.

But just then, amidst the muffled hum, a barely perceptible sound rang out, like the friction of metal colliding.

The sound was extremely faint, but it did not escape Wang Jie's perception. The two of them looked toward the source of the sound at the same time, and suddenly their eyes widened in disbelief!

This enormous ghost, like a whale, has an excretory opening on its back, through which it periodically expels impurities from its body.

Large amounts of jet-black liquid gushed out from here like a fountain, turning into a drizzle after rising to a certain height.

This was nothing surprising, just like every time they defecated, but this time, with that soft sound, the two saw a dark shadow spray out of the excrement!
The dark shadow tumbled several times in the air before barely regaining its balance. Then it spread its body, and the surrounding yin energy seemed to form a pair of invisible gliders, carrying it away into the distance.

"Senior, am I seeing things? That looks like a person!"

"To be precise, they are members of a demon-exorcising civilization." Chu Xiu narrowed his eyes, his expression calm but his heart filled with shock.

He never expected that the Exorcist civilization would actually have survivors! But how could it be such a coincidence? They just happened to run into them like that? And why did it spew out from the body of that giant ghost?
"Senior, what about us?"

"Follow them and see," Chu Xiu decided immediately.

"it is good."

The two lifted the stones covering their bodies, landed on the ground, and carefully followed the figure floating in the sky.

The man didn't seem very strong. He stumbled and staggered through the thick fog of yin energy, and several times he couldn't even keep his balance and almost fell.

Fortunately, it landed safely on a nearby protruding cliff face.

The man sat on the protrusion, catching his breath. He took out a skull from his hand and then walked in a certain direction, guided by the skull.

It seemed unable to adapt well to the yin environment, shivering in the cold, and its spiritual light flickered.

Because the enormous ghost had not completely left, Chu Xiu and his companion dared not approach and could only watch from afar.

“Senior, this person seems to possess some means that makes that large ghost ignore him,” Jiang Miaoyin said.

While the two were talking, the man had already climbed over the cliff and disappeared from their sight.

However, since its rank was not high and it did not deliberately conceal its whereabouts, Chu Xiu and his companion were not in a hurry to pursue it. About a quarter of an hour later, when the enormous ghost had completely disappeared from sight, the two relit the oil lamps to dispel the yin energy, and then took to the air, chasing after the direction in which the person had disappeared.

Soon, they spotted two shallow sets of footprints. Following the footprints, they soon found a narrow crevice in front of them.

"Is it the Twilight Realm? Does that person want to leave?" Jiang Miaoyin guessed.

Chu Xiu remained silent, only flapping the wings of Garuda. Soon, the two crossed the Twilight Realm, where the skeletal ghost, with only its upper body remaining, appeared in their sight.

At this moment, the ghost seemed a little cleaner than before. Suddenly, a muffled sound came from the ghost's huge head. Chu Xiu and the other looked at each other and flew inside.

Although Chu Xiu had not explored inside before, he had already scanned the entire ghost with his divine sense. Inside its head was only a pile of dry bones, nothing else special.

And it remains the same now, except that among the countless skeletons on the ground, there is now one more member of the exorcist clan lying on the ground, barely alive.

Its face was deathly pale; it had been invaded by yin energy and was nearing its end.

This bizarre scene left Chu Xiu and Jiang Miaoyin bewildered, both unsure of what was going on.

Did this guy go through all that trouble to get here just to wait to die?

At this moment, Chu Xiu looked at the pile of withered bones on the ground and revealed a thoughtful expression.

After a moment's thought, Chu Xiu flicked his finger, and a wisp of lamp flame flew to the person's side, dispelling the surrounding yin energy. Chu Xiu then waved his hand, and the surging demonic energy surrounded the entire head, preventing any external yin energy from seeping in.

Soon, the inside of the skull warmed up.

The person was barely clinging to life, but as the yin energy was dispelled, his complexion gradually became rosy, and he soon woke up.

Upon seeing Chu Xiu and the other man, he was immediately startled, jumped up, and rapidly babbled a long string of words in a language that the two men could not understand.

"Calm down, I saved your life."

Chu Xiu's calm thoughts were transmitted, which stunned the exorcist clansman. He began to carefully examine Chu Xiu and his companion, and after a long while, he mumbled something in his own language.

Chu Xiu turned to Jiang Miaoyin: "What is he saying?"

Jiang Miaoyin was both amused and exasperated: "Senior, do you really think I'm omnipotent? How would I know what he's talking about?"

Chu Xiu said, "Didn't your clan decipher quite a few characters before?"

"But it's only less than 30% so far, is that enough?"

“Give it a try,” Chu Xiu said.

“Alright.” Jiang Miaoyin tentatively used her spiritual power to draw a few symbols in the air. Fortunately, the exorcist clansmen seemed to be literate, and their eyes lit up immediately. They quickly started to draw as well, and the three of them began to communicate in this stumbling manner.

About half an hour later, Chu Xiu finally figured out what had happened.

The Exorcist civilization actually has survivors! And quite a few of them! A full 30,000!
It turns out that this tribe usually lived near the blessed land and was a famous and powerful tribe at that time.

Faced with the desperate situation of a global uprising of ghosts, their patriarch suddenly came up with a brilliant plan.

At that time, this enormous ghost already existed. Although it was not nearly as large as it is now, it was still several kilometers long and a dominant force that roamed the blessed land. It was also the main fighting force that attacked their tribe when the ghosts rioted.

The clan chief gathered the most talented and promising members of the clan together, feigned defeat, and let the giant ghost devour them. Then, he quickly activated the prepared formation, sacrificing the lives of over a hundred powerful individuals to carve out a space inside the giant ghost's belly.

To put it simply, they disguised themselves as a kidney stone.

A stone rooted in the belly of a giant monster.

Within these "stones" are fifty carefully selected "seeds," the knowledge of the entire tribe, and the meager resources necessary for their survival.

Over the next two thousand years, this batch of "seeds" evaded the pursuit of other ghosts in this bizarre way and survived by chance.

After all, even the Ghost King probably couldn't have imagined that someone was hiding inside the stomach of one of his generals.

As the giant ghost continued to absorb yin energy and expand its soul body, this group of people also continued to grow stronger. Among them, some people with extraordinary talents emerged from time to time. Some people discovered a way to expand the "stones", and some people invented a way to steal yin energy. In this way, they continuously improved their living environment.

Today, the tribe has grown to 30,000 people. Although these 30,000 people are crammed into a small space, like living in a cramped submarine, they have survived tenaciously.

"Unfortunately, the new generation of clansmen no longer sees that formation as a protection, but rather as a kind of prison."

"In that crowded space, some people yearn for freedom more than death."

"Seventeen hundred years ago, a genius invented a way to leave. Since then, we have never given up exploring the outside world. Although none of the explorers who went out have returned, let alone brought back any useful information, many people still believe that they have lived a free life after leaving this place."

"I am one of them."

"I was once the tribe's physician and one of the top ten strongest members. I dedicated my life to the tribe. As I began to age, I could no longer suppress my longing for the outside world and decided to go out and explore."

"At that time, I had only one obsession: to die outside!"

"However, once I came out, I immediately realized the problem. The density of the Yin energy here had somehow become more than ten times that recorded in ancient books."

"However, I had no way out at this point. I could only rely on the guidance of the item in my hand to head to the legendary 'sanctuary' that connects me to the outside world."

"But when I finally arrived here, my body already corrupted by the Yin energy, and saw the piles of withered bones, I understood everything. I finally knew the final resting place of the most outstanding warriors of the clan who had left in the past."

At this point, the man couldn't help but cover his face and weep: "There is no outside anymore. We are the last survivors. Even if there were, we would have to leave this blessed land. But given how dense the yin energy is here, it's impossible for anyone to get out."

"Even if we get out, where can we go?"

"So I did the same thing as all the explorers before me, which was also the last thing I could do."

"I cleaned up this sanctuary, replenished my remaining soul power with the guidance equipment, and then sat here quietly to await death."

As soon as she finished speaking, Jiang Miaoyin couldn't help but show a look of sympathy. She quietly tugged at Chu Xiu's sleeve and whispered, "Senior, they are so pitiful."

The outstanding young men of the clan sacrificed themselves one after another, only to maintain a sliver of hope in the end.

Even more tragically, this tribe might also be the luckiest one, because they eventually got to meet Chu Xiu and Jiang Miaoyin.

“And all of this was caused by us.” Jiang Miaoyin’s expression was somewhat gloomy.

Chu Xiu did not reply, but pondered what the man had said. He thought of a bad possibility, and his expression turned somewhat grim.

He naturally didn't share the same excessive sympathy as this girl. What concerned him was whether the signage system here was maintained solely because of people constantly being sponsored, and what about other places?
Letting out a soft breath, Chu Xiu stopped thinking about it and turned to look at the person.

"So, if you want to liberate your people, you must kill that colossal monster?"

(End of this chapter)