Everlasting

 

“Right! How did I forget?” Luo Bo quickly brought out a jade talisman to contact Chen Feng.

“I am fine. You fellows go ahead first. I will meet up with you guys later.” Chen Feng’s voice could soon be heard from the jade talisman.

“You really are fine! In that case, we can rest easy. Let’s go.”

Thus, with the two elders protecting them, Sun Xuan and the other disciples returned. On their way back, they met up with many other cultivators. All those cultivators, be it loose cultivators or Extreme Celestial Sect disciples, share a common aspect. They all had a wretched appearance and were in a state of panic. A good number of them were wounded as well.

“This is going to be chaotic. Hopefully, the sect will send out their experts to suppress this demonic beast horde.”

“Heh! For us, this place has become a danger zone. However, for true experts, this place has become an even better place to hone themselves.”

“True. It would be safer for us to leave. Let the experts worry about this place.”

“A pity! Too many people have died this time. Even Sky Human stage cultivators were smashed apart by those demonic beasts!”

The teleportation array at the entrance to the Demon Trial Grounds kept flashing with light. Every time it did, a group of cultivators would be teleported out.

After three days, the number of cultivators emerging from the teleportation array had exceeded 5,000. Of that number, 60 % were loose cultivators, 20 % were disciples from other sects while the remaining 20 % were disciples from Extreme Celestial Sect.

Light flashed out once more. Following that, Sun Xuan and the others appeared. By then, the area outside the teleportation array had become filled with cultivators from Extreme Celestial Sect. As for the other cultivators, they were driven away by Extreme Celestial Sect’s forces the moment they emerged.

Yet again, light flashed out. This time, it was not due to someone coming out from the Demon Trial Grounds. Instead, it was due to some cultivators entering the place.

They were the experts dispatched by Extreme Celestial Sect. They wanted to enter to investigate what was going on. There was a total of six cultivators and the weakest amongst them was a level 5 Sky Human stage cultivator. These cultivators headed into the Demon Trial Grounds the moment they arrived, not tarrying in the slightest.

“The one in the lead earlier is Elder Sun Gan. I have heard that he entered cultivation retreat not too long ago, wanting to overcome his 7^th Lightning Tribulation. I wonder if he succeeded?” a level 1 Sky Human stage cultivator blurted out.

“He must surely have succeeded, otherwise he would not have ended his cultivation retreat.  Elder Sun Gan’s honorific title is Sage Spiritwalk. Rumour has it that his spiritwalking technique is unmatched within our sect. With him taking the lead, this matter will surely be resolved!”

“I have heard that there are not just Great Demons in this Demon Trial Grounds. There are also Demon Kings! I wonder if that is true. If there are truly Demon Kings, sending Sky Human stage cultivators in would be useless.”

“Those are all rumours. Who knows if they are true or false? Besides, even if there are Demon Kings inside, our Extreme Celestial Sect has Human Immortals as well!”

The six experts, with Sun Gan as their leader, entered the Demon Trial Grounds and their expressions immediately sank. They had overcome many Lightning Tribulations before. Thus, their divine senses were extremely potent. They were capable of sensing the abnormality of their surroundings.

“Such intense emanations! It seems there are quite a lot of Great Demons.” 

“Several of the demonic energy waves are very strong. It will be somewhat difficult to handle.”

After entering, Sun Gan’s group only scanned around for demonic beasts at the Great Demon stage. The lesser demonic beasts, however, could not attract them at all, no matter how many of them there were.

“Let’s go! We’ll head deep inside and investigate. Could this be due to the sealed entity?”

“Possible. If something truly did happen to the seal, the six of us will simply be marching to our deaths.”

After that, the six Sky Human stage cultivators simultaneously flew upwards before splitting into six different directions as they flew deep into the Demon Trial Grounds.

By then, Chen Feng had concluded his fight with the humanoid demon. They were equally matched in the end. Although Chen Feng’s true power was still not as high as the humanoid demon’s, he was faster. Their battle lasted for four hours in total. Truth be told, Chen Feng had wanted to continue honing himself for a while longer. However, Tower suddenly warned him that there were strong demonic energy waves approaching his position. Chen Feng knew that meant there were stronger demonic beasts coming towards him.

The current Chen Feng could not even defeat a humanoid demon. If several more humanoid demons or demonic beasts at the Great Demon stage were to appear, Chen Feng can forget about escaping.

Of course, with his present level of cultivation, only demonic beasts at the Great Demon stage could pose a threat to him. As for the lesser demonic beasts, even if there were tens of thousands of them, they could not stop Chen Feng from coming and going at will.

The demonic energy here is even thicker than before. Moreover, the suppressive effect is also stronger. It seems I have ventured deep into the Demon Trial Grounds, Chen Feng thought.

“Kid, since you are already inside, just spend some time here to train yourself. Do not forget, there is still a long way to go for you to reach the Sky Human stage,” Tower said.

The Longevity Scripture was harder to practice than other cultivation techniques. However, its power was not something that other cultivation techniques could match up against. Take Chen Feng for example. He had only cultivated up to level 5 of the Concealed stage, but he could already fight against Sky Human stage cultivators. After reaching the Sky Human stage, performing an instant kill on cultivators at the same stage as him would be as easy as drinking water. 

“However, I keep getting the feeling that there are some dangers here.” Chen Feng was feeling somewhat doubtful.

“Only when there is danger will there be pressure. Only when there is pressure will there be rapid progress!” Tower encouraged him.

Chen Feng was aware. Whenever Tower used that tone, it meant things would not be good for him. However, Chen Feng himself did not want to leave so soon. It was indeed a good place to practice cultivation. Not only did the earlier fight with the humanoid demon give him a vast amount of combat experience, it also helped him further stabilize his cultivation base. As a result, he had gained a deeper understanding of some combat techniques.

There was something else as well, something that made Chen Feng excited. The longevity weapons that he condensed out were seemingly on the verge of levelling up. That was especially true of the Longevity Shield, which he had utilized the most during the battle. It was already at a critical juncture.

“A pity, the Demonic Heavengorging Art is incomplete. Additionally, its grade is somewhat low. It would be great if I can capture a high-ranking Devourer Beast,” Chen Feng said, shaking his head.

“You think it's that easy? The number of Devourer Beasts is small to begin with. You were lucky enough to be able to encounter one. Besides, if a powerful one appears for real, it would immediately suck you dry,” Tower said disdainfully. 

At that moment, Chen Feng was riding the Lightstream Shield as he swiftly flew forward. There was a distance of tens of metres between the shield and the ground as it flew forward, leaving a bright line of light across the sky. Chen Feng did not know where he was. He was simply moving forward aimlessly. He would attempt to hide whenever he encountered a demonic beast horde. If he could not hide himself, he would then battle them.

However, Chen Feng did gain some harvests along the way, the demon cores he obtained by killing off the demonic beasts. To Chen Feng’s slight disappointment, the grade of the demon cores was too low. They were not too useful for him.

“Could I be so fortunate? I am not encountering a single Great Demon! It seems I will have to hand these demon cores over to the sect in exchange for contribution points,” said a somewhat disappointed Chen Feng.

This time, Tower did not respond. Instead, he was secretly grinning. Wait till you actually encounter Great Demons. You better not cry then. 

“Tower, do you know how far inside I am?” asked Chen Feng after a moment’s consideration.

“There is a distance of roughly 2,500 kilometres between here and the teleportation array,” Tower said coolly.

“What? 2,500 kilometres?! Isn’t this too deep?” Chen Feng was taken aback. The farthest Sun Xuan and the others ever gotten was only 1,500 kilometres in. 

“What are you afraid of? How can a cultivator be cowardly? Besides, you have already entered this place for quite some time, but you have nothing to show for it other than some small demon cores. You didn’t get anything significant like demonic spirit stones, demonic soul stones, Plague Flowers, Withered Bone Vines, Bloodthirsty Flowers and Demonblood Grasses. Those are all good items amongst good items! And yet, you didn’t get a single one. Going back like this, isn’t this too much of a loss? 

“Besides, this is a trial ground. Who knows how many people have died here? Who knows? You might be lucky enough to pick up some magic treasures or others of the sort! Not to mention, there is no danger right now. What are you worried about? Even if there are dangers, you can just consider it a way to hone yourself.” Tower said with an earnest and well-meaning tone.

“I am already 2,500 kilometres inside. And yet, I have yet to find any treasures. This place doesn’t quite match what Sun Xuan and the others said.” Chen Feng kept flying forward while observing his surroundings.

“Who said there aren’t any treasures? If I am not mistaken, there is a demonic spirit stone mine not far ahead,” Tower said with an amused tone.

“What?! Demonic spirit stone mine?” Chen Feng’s eyes lit up. That was a good thing. Recently, the number of spirit stones on his person had been falling at an extreme rate and he was wondering how he should go about replenishing them. Unexpectedly, there was a demonic spirit stone mine here. The value of a demonic spirit stone was in no way lower than that of a Magic crystal.

“Is there really a demonic spirit stone mine here?” Chen Feng asked again.

“You’ll know by checking it out.” There was a pleased tone in Tower’s voice.

Chen Feng ignored Tower and increased his flight speed. It did not take long for him to sense that the demonic energy up ahead had become thicker. Not to mention, there was a feeling of thickness and tangibility within it.

“There is indeed something different. There should be a spirit stone mine. However, the number of demonic beasts up ahead is quite high as well,” said a frowning Chen Feng.

“Heh! Just some demonic beasts. Kill off all those demonic beasts and the demonic spirit stone mine will be yours,” said Tower temptingly.

“I am very suspicious as to whether or not you really are the artefact spirit of the Longevity Tower. To think that those bandit-like words could come out from you,” Chen Feng said scornfully.

“Ha ha, kid! Cultivation is itself a bandit-like action!” Tower laughed.

“What do you mean?” Chen Feng became puzzled.

“Normally, when you practice cultivation, you would absorb spiritual energy, consume spirit stones, pluck medicinal herbs and even absorb earthen power. Those were all snatched from the world. When you reach the Sky Human stage, you will have to undergo Lightning Tribulation. When that happens, you will begin snatching vitality and karmic luck from both Heaven and Earth. Such is cultivation. Snatching those outside to develop your own body. He he! If those aren’t the actions of a bandit, then what is?” After saying that, Tower could not stop himself from laughing out.

Hearing that, Chen Feng felt inspired but also slightly confused. He felt as though he was on the verge of grasping something, but was not quite able to. It was something that remained vague to him.

“Enough! Your cultivation base is not high enough. Don’t think too much about it. When your cultivation base is high enough, you will naturally be able to grasp it,” Tower said happily. 

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