Chapter 241: Poisonous Bog

At the poisonous bog.

The orange-red flames resembled numerous streams flowing amidst the wet swamp. Under the baking of intense heat, the bog’s poisonous water was evaporated at a great pace.

The flames came from the fire crystals, Fiery Solar Jade, and other fire type crystals. These crystals were supposed to be used by artificers as fire sources. However, now they had no choice but to ignite these precious fire stones to dry the land and create a suitable place for Armament Sect to rest.

The crystalline fire stones emanated with fiery light as they dried the bog and burned all the tiny poisonous insects to death.

A piece of land about a hundred square meters in size without any swamp, puddle or poisonous plant in it was gradually formed under the burning flames.

The three great reverends, seven great inner sect elders, and more than a hundred surviving Armament Sect martial practitioners stood above the dry ground baked by intense flames. The serious expressions on their faces finally started to relax as time passed by.

“The poisonous bog is very dangerous. There is almost no chance for those who aren’t familiar with the characteristics of poison to survive here without having prepared the appropriate antidotes and pills.” There were several spots on Mo Hai’s clothes that had been charred by the flame sparks as he looked towards the Armament Sect members and said, “This is because this place is more dangerous, and even we have to pay a huge price to base ourselves here. Therefore, it will be more difficult than normal for Eight Extreme Temple and Profound Heaven Alliance to deal with us, whereas the five great forces will not even dare to step into this land at all. This is because none of them are proficient in poisons.”

“Mn, Profound Heaven Alliance and Eight Extreme Temple cannot be trusted. If it weren’t because the evil nether passageway had opened, they would never have let us go,”said Second Reverend Fang Qi.

“Blood Spear needs a new training ground,” Lang Xie said at the side.

“We need time, and we also need to find somewhere suitable,” opined Mo Hai.

After they had evacuated from Flame Volcano, the three great reverends and Blood Spear members had gathered together and passed through Blood Spear’s training ground, taking everything they could with them, then entered the poisonous bog.

After a road of hardships, they had finally arrived inside and forcefully scorched a piece of dry land with the fire stones, ready to set their foot in this place.

As of this moment, Armament Sect’s inner and outer sect members, added with Blood Spear’s Lang Xie and Feng Rong’s group, numbered only around one hundred.

—They did not even number one tenth of their original force.

It could be said that Armament Sect had suffered a tremendous loss, but the sect’s most important people had survived.

The inner sect’s three great reverends and seven great elders along with Blood Spear’s Lang Xie and Feng Rong were the true foundations of Armament Sect, the true core.

Those who had been killed and cleaned up by the five forces were mostly foreign delegates, outer sect martial practitioners, and outer sect disciples.

They were not part of Armament Sect’s core.

As long as Armament Sect continued to stand on Scarlet Tide Continent and could preserve its strength, then it would be a simple matter to replenish their foreign delegates, outer sect martial practitioners, and outer sect disciples.

That was why, despite the tragic losses, Armament Sect had only sustained flesh wounds rather than taken internal damage.

“As long as Qin Lie survives, as long as the twelve spirit pattern pillars are around, and as long as we survive, Armament Sect will continue to exist!” Chief Reverend Luo Zhichang yelled.

“And Xingran as well!” Jiang Hao said.

Ying Xingran, frozen in ice, was carried out by Lang Xie from the peak of the mountain before Flame Volcano had collapsed.

He had also been brought to the poisonous bog.

According to Xue Li, Ying Xingran could probably still be saved. Given enough time and preparation, Ying Xingran should be able to survive this disaster.

The crowd looked at the frozen Ying Xingran and thought about their current circumstances. All sorts of emotions welled up in their minds as they felt they had been reborn.

“Could Qin Lie have been kidnapped by Profound Heaven Alliance and Eight Extreme Temple?” Tan Dongling asked in worry.

“Even if he was kidnapped, there shouldn’t be any threat to his life. He is the only person who can reseal the evil nether passageway, so it’s unthinkable that Profound Heaven Alliance and Eight Extreme Temple would kill him,” Luo Zhichang answered. “Judging from the fact that Profound Heaven Alliance and Eight Extreme Temple had forbidden the five forces from taking revenge on us, we can see that they have made up their minds to combine everyone’s strength to fight the evil forces from the Nether Realm.”

“That’s right, they need us! They need us artificers to survive!” Jiang Hao proudly exclaimed.

Lian Rou and Tang Siqi sat on meditation mats among a group of inner sect disciples and looked at the rainbow-colored poisonous gas in the sky.

“Sister Rou, is your family not far from here?” Tang Siqi abruptly asked.

“It is quite far.” Lian Rou looked into the distance with a hint of worry on her face. “My family is only reachable through this bog. You can say that my home is at the edge of the swamp, which is why my family has deep knowledge of poisonous insects and poison itself. That’s why I managed to become an Armament Sect inner sect disciple. Besides the fact that I have some level of talent in artifact forging, part of it was also because of my background.”

“Sister Rou, how did Sect Master and Elder Mo Hai come to be experts in poison?” Tang Siqi suddenly lowered her voice and asked.

“We had a poison master in our sect before. A long time ago, he… cultivated at the poisonous bog. I’m not sure about the details, but in short, he cultivated poison to the point where he killed himself instead. Before he died, however, he had written down all of his knowledge about poison and his experiences with refining medicine into a book and returned it to the sect. Both Sect Master and Mo Hai read through that book, which is why they are very knowledgeable about poison,” Lian Rou answered.

“Have you seen that book before then?” Tang Siqi asked doubtfully.

“I’m not good enough yet. Perhaps I’ll have to wait until Sect Master and Elder Mo Hai grow old before they would pass down that book to me.” Lian Rou’s expression was one of indifference. “Speaking of which, medicine refining is also a branch of artifact forging. From my point of view, the reason the sect recruited me is because that senior had a mind to pass down his inheritance and skills in medicine refining.”

“Sister Rou, about Qin Lie and Ling Yushi…” Tang Siqi said softly.

“Qin Lie killed Jiu Liuyu and many people from Dark Fiend Valley. The next time Ling Yushi faces Qin Lie, she may not be able to accept it in her heart.” Lian Rou thought for a moment and then continued, “If she cannot accept it, then a gap between her and Qin Lie will open up. A very troublesome gap.”

Tang Siqi bit her lips as her eyes gradually lit up.

“The current Qin Lie is no longer that obscure Qin Lie in the past. In the future… there may be a lot of girls around him. You need to mentally prepare yourself,” Lian Rou sighed softly.

A faint smile appeared at the corner of Tang Siqi’s lips upon hearing her words, before suddenly, she froze.

“Qin Lie is back!”

“Sect Master Qin is back!”

“This is great! As long as Sect Master Qin is still in Armament Sect, Armament Sect will be safe. We will be able to face any force’s siege!”

“Yeah, it’s thanks to Sect Master Qin leading us against the five great forces, Eight Extreme Temple, and Profound Heaven Alliance that we were able to survive until now!”

“Sect Master Qin is even greater than the previous sect master!”

“……”

The moment they heard that Qin Lie had arrived, everyone in Armament Sect boiled up and praised him passionately.

There were plenty of girls in Armament Sect who hurriedly rushed out to surround recently arrived Qin Lie. Each one of them had eyes shining with the light of admiration.

“Now you get what I mean, don’t you?” Lian Rou said.

A helpless expression appeared on Tang Siqi’s beautiful face. “Yes, I can see that. After this crisis, he has become a great hero and a pillar in everyone’s hearts.”

“After this incident, even I feel that he has become Armament Sect’s pillar, much less other people?” Lian Rou smiled.

“It looks like I’ll have a lot of competitors in the future!” Tang Siqi gripped her little fists and hmphed, “I should dominate this guy as soon as possible!”

Lian Rou chuckled and said, “Now this is more like it. That’s the Tang Siqi I know!”

“Reverends, elders, are you all okay?” Qin Lie walked over.

“We’re fine for now. As long as Profound Heaven Alliance and Eight Extreme Temple don’t try to slaughter us all, then we can still survive in the poisonous bog.” Luo Zhichang’s expression was bitter. Then he remembered something. “How did you manage to get here? Why did that Xie Zhizhang and Song Siyuan let you go?”

“I escaped,” Qin Lie answered.

The crowd was dumbfounded.

“Save it for later!” Lang Xie passed through the crowd and stood before Qin Lie, solemnly saying, “Armament Sect’s crisis has not yet ended. The evil races from the Nether Realm have appeared, and even Profound Heaven Alliance and Eight Extreme Temple had to use all everything at their disposal to deal with them. Moreover, the place taken over by the evil forces from the Nether Realm is our old sect—they are right before us!”

The moment Lang Xie said this, everyone turned serious. They all knew what he said was true.

“Sect Master Qin, if you still have the energy, then please forge a large number of Terminator Profound Bombs!” Lang Xie yelled.

The moment they heard “Terminator Profound Bomb,” everyone’s eyes lit up again in unison as they said, “That’s right! We should forge Terminator Profound Bombs in large amounts! It’s a terrifying item that can turn the tides!”

The three great reverends’ expressions also shook as they turned to Qin Lie together. Fang Qi asked, “Qin Lie, can you forge them?”

“With enough materials, I can start any time,” Qin Lie answered.

“It is enough! It will definitely be enough!” Jiang Hao interrupted, “Our years of accumulated wealth is all sealed within the spatial rings, and these spatial rings are currently in our possession. We have all the necessary materials to forge artifacts, this is one thing you don’t need to worry about!”

“Then there should be no problem,” Qin Lie nodded.

“Prepare all the materials, the fire sources, and the furnaces Qin Lie needs to forge artifacts. Let’s open up a special artifact forging area for him!” Chief Reverend Luo Zhichang ordered.

Everyone began to busy themselves to prepare for the forging of Terminator Profound Bombs, taking action to secure the safety of Armament Sect.

The explosions of the six Terminator Profound Bombs had buried three quarters of the five forces’ elites in but an instant. That destructive power had deeply engraved itself in the minds of everyone who laid eyes upon the power of the Terminator Profound Bomb.

The Terminator Profound Bomb was Forefather Terminator’s destructive treasure from Silent Heaven Continent. At its highest rank, it was an item that could kill even a terrifying existence like a Nirvana Realm martial practitioner.

If Armament Sect had enough Terminator Profound Bombs, then even Profound Heaven Alliance and Eight Extreme Temple would have to think twice before dealing with Armament Sect!

“Put other tasks on hold and focus on forging the Terminator Profound Bombs. We need at least ten of them first,” said Luo Zhichang seriously.

Qin Lie nodded, “Don’t worry, I know how important Terminator Profound Bombs are for us right now. I will hurry them out.”

“That will be great. They will be our bargaining chip with Eight Extreme Temple and Profound Heaven Alliance!” Fang Qi said.

Chapter 242: The Python Tattoo On His Neck

One hundred and fifty kilometers east of Dark Asura Hall.

A wide flatland stood at the center of a huge mountain that pierced into the clouds with a great city situated on top of this very flatland.

This great city was at least ten times bigger than Armament City and located in the middle of many mountains. The stone buildings inside the city resembled small hills that were at least a dozen or so meters tall.

Many luxuriously dressed martial practitioners traversed the infinitely wide streets. All sorts of restaurants, red-light districts, treasure stores, and combat grounds were completely crowded. Countless martial practitioners from the surrounding forces would come here to seek entertainment.

This was Profound Heaven City, the headquarters of Profound Heaven Alliance, and the land held by the Song, Xie, and Nie Families and also the most prosperous city on Scarlet Tide Continent.

It was early in the morning. The bright sunlight shined down on Profound Heaven City, bathing it in a majestic atmosphere.

Profound Heaven Great Hall.

Three imposing-looking men sat on chairs carved from the carcasses of giant beasts with serious expressions on their faces.

Many well-dressed men and women also stood right behind them. All of them wore heavy looks on their faces and heavy hearts within.

Xue Zhizhang and Song Siyuan stood at the center of the trio. Under everyone’s gazes, they explained all major events that had transpired at Armament Sect that day.

An old demon suddenly appearing and capturing Xie Zhizhang, wielding unfathomable strength.

A strange item called the Terminator Profound Bomb that nearly routed the entire five forces, instantly overturning the tides for Armament Sect.

The twelve spirit pattern pillars soaring to the sky and killing Jiu Liuyu, intimidating all elites within the vicinity.

The stone caves emanating a dark and evil aura, the evil nether passageway appearing, the Demon Armor Insects and Soul Corroding Beasts gushing out of the tainted waters…

Xie Zhizhang and Song Siyuan had explained everything they had encountered without missing even a single detail, explaining how serious the situation was to the patriarchs of Profound Heaven Alliance’s three great families.

The Song Family’s Patriarch Song Yu; the Xie Family’s Patriarch Xie Yaoyang; and the Nie Family’s Patriarch Nie Yun. All three patriarchs had gathered at this spot a while back and summoned the core members of the three great families to discuss the matters together.

“You immediately stopped the attack on Armament Sect. On this point, you guys did very well.” Song Yu wore a clean green robe without a single ornament on him. His expression was gentle and he wore a smile when he spoke, giving off the illusion of someone who was gentle and easy-going. “At this stage, to attack Armament Sect any longer will affect the overall situation. There is use in keeping those artificers alive—at the least they can still forge some artifacts for us—and as for that Qin Lie… have you uncovered his identity?”

He looked at Song Siyuan.

Song Siyuan frowned slightly before shaking his head and said, “We are not too sure.”

Song Yu’s eyes narrowed as a hint of displease leaked out of his pupils. “What is it?”

“That Qin Lie kid suddenly appeared at Ling Town a few years ago along with his grandfather…” Xue Zhizhang reported the information he acquired.

“He appeared out of nowhere and was retarded for five years? He cultivated inside the belly of the mountain during all that time?” Song Yu’s eyes shone with a strange light as he pondered for a moment before nodding and then saying, “It appears that this kid has an extraordinary background. He may not even be a local from Scarlet Tide Continent…”

The crowd inwardly nodded.

“Send word to Eight Extreme Temple. Have them send people to the Nether Battlefield immediately and transport the equipment that is used against the evil races.” Song Yu pondered while sending out orders continuously, “We, the three families, will immediately send our experts to the evil nether passageway and build the first line of defense fifty miles away from the area to stop the Nether Realm’s nether beasts from poisoning the surrounding cities.

“The strange item called the Terminator Profound Bomb has incredible killing power. If we can acquire its forging method, then that will be best. If not, then we will order some from Armament Sect. We will leave this matter to…”

Song Yu scanned the hall as his gaze swam across everyone’s faces. After a while, he said, “We tried to eliminate Armament Sect beforehand, and now we’re about to beg for their help. This may be a little problematic. Negotiations in such circumstances will require a certain level of skill. Average people may not be able to handle this.”

At this point, the crowd’s expressions moved as if they could guess who he was going to send out.

“Why do I not see Yu’er?” Song Yu asked.

Someone answered, “The miss has just come back from overseas, and she has been recuperating as of late. She said that she wants to rest for the time being instead of running around for the family.”

“The evil races of Nether Realm are about to invade us en masse, and Scarlet Tide Continent is facing a huge crisis as of this moment. We cannot afford to have her rest.” Song Yu yelled, “Notify her immediately to head towards Armament Sect as soon as possible. She will be responsible for the negotiations with Armament Sect.”

“Understood.”

“Get ready, all of you. This time we’re not fighting at Nether Battlefield but at our own homes. We will devastate the evil races of the Nether Realm!”

Everyone voiced their promises.

……

Skypiercing Mountain, Eight Extreme Temple.

At the top of the cloud-covered mountain, a man dressed in a golden ceremonial vestment with eyes as deep as the sea stared at the sun on top of a cliff.

Zhan Tianyi knelt behind him and, with his head lowered respectfully, explained everything that occurred at Armament Sect and the shocking turn of events.

“Holy Master, Profound Heaven Alliance has just sent word to us. They want us to head to Nether Battlefield as soon as possible to transport the items that we use to deal with the evil races of Nether Battlefield,” Zhan Tianyi said respectfully.

“Why have you not brought that Qin Lie kid back to me? There is a certain limit to how far one can escape with a spatial spirit artifact.” The golden robed man spoke with a very beautiful voice, causing people to feel as if they were in spring and listening to the word of god. His voice alone carried a strange charm that could subvert a person’s soul. “Song Siyuan cannot search by air since he rides a Silver Armored Giant Alligator, but you ride a Green Hunting Bat which is capable of searching thousands of miles in a short period of time.”

He turned around while wearing a natural and peaceful smile. “Have you searched within a thousand mile radius?”