Chapter 700: Heart-Pounding and Soul-Stirring
Suddenly, the Daoist-robed old man whom Shengshu Cainü had called "Sect Leader Ning" stopped in his tracks and glanced toward a nearby passage. His expression turned extremely solemn. "Something is wrong. I sense a strange aura. Someone has been here."
"Hua!"
The Daoist-robed old man waved his arm, and dozens of beams of Sacred Qi light shot from his palm, flying toward the thirty-seven passages distributed in all directions.
Each beam of Sacred Artifact light contained a sound wave, simultaneously transmitting a message to the guard warriors stationed in the altar, ordering them to strengthen their vigilance.
Shengshu Cainü wore a white robe, her tall and slender figure accentuated. Her jet-black hair was tied up with a crown, giving her the appearance of a handsome young gentleman. She held a folding fan inscribed with characters, her lips red and teeth white, exuding an elegant and graceful demeanor.
"Sect Leader Ning, I'll leave this place to you!"
She smiled, revealing bright eyes and beautiful teeth, then added, "If the secret of the Heaven and Earth Altar were to leak out by accident, you know better than I how severe the consequences would be."
With that, Shengshu Cainü turned around, entered one of the passages, and quickly disappeared.
Zhang Ruochen was hiding in a corner about twenty zhang away, wrapped tightly in the Meteor Invisibility Cloak. Yet, the Daoist-robed old man seemed to have detected something and walked straight toward his direction.
Closer and closer.
Fifteen zhang, fourteen zhang, thirteen zhang...
"Boom!"
In the distance, the sound of battle erupted, and faintly, two immense forces could be felt colliding.
Immediately after, the altar shook slightly.
One of the passages surged with powerful energy, rushing out as a stream of true qi, sweeping past and scraping "whoosh" sounds against the jade walls.
"Sect Leader, a Half-Saint has broken into the Xuan Gu layer of the altar and has already killed twelve guard warriors."
An urgent telepathic message reached the Daoist-robed old man's ears.
"Hmph!"
The Daoist-robed old man immediately stopped in his tracks, transforming into a rapidly moving shadow that charged toward the passage from which the energy had surged.
"Could there be someone else who entered the altar?"
Zhang Ruochen let out a long breath, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and felt as if he had just walked through the gates of hell. He quickly stood up and rushed into the passage leading downward.
He couldn't stay here any longer; he had to leave immediately.
That old Daoist was likely the Sect Leader of Liangyi Sect, Ning Xuandao.
If he were discovered by him, Zhang Ruochen would surely face certain death.
Now, if he returned the way he came, it would be nothing short of suicide.
But Zhang Ruochen believed that this Heaven and Earth Altar definitely had more than one door. There must be another exit at the foot of Ancient God Mountain.
Escape! Escape! Escape!
Zhang Ruochen charged downward at top speed. Wearing the Meteor Invisibility Cloak, his speed reached its peak, and he soon arrived at the lowest level of the Heaven and Earth Altar.
Sure enough, at the bottom of the altar, Zhang Ruochen discovered a stone door twenty zhang high.
On the stone door were carved two coiled flood dragons, their claws spread, poised to pounce forward.
The walls on either side of the stone door were recessed, and in those recessed positions stood two three-meter-tall metal giants. They held battle axes, motionless, like two forged divine general statues.
Zhang Ruochen arrived beneath the stone door, inserted his hands into the gap below, and mobilized all his Sacred Qi, trying to lift the door.
"Crack, crack!"
Zhang Ruochen had only lifted the stone door half a chi when suddenly, a layer of crimson light appeared on the door's surface. Hundreds of formation inscription patterns emerged simultaneously, increasing the door's weight tenfold.
With a loud crash, the stone door fell back down.
"Such a heavy stone door. It would probably take a Half-Saint to open it."
Zhang Ruochen exhaled deeply. Instead of using brute force to lift the door, he began to mobilize the power of space, concentrating it on the fingertips of his right hand, preparing to tear through space and break the door directly.
Just then, the metal giants standing on either side of the stone door seemed to be stimulated by some force. Their eyes snapped open, emitting a cold, chilling light.
"Hua, hua!"
The metal giant on the left stepped forward, descended from the stone platform, swung its battle axe, and slashed diagonally toward Zhang Ruochen's neck.
"Intruding the altar means death."
The metal giant was a "Refined Artifact Warrior," possessing immense strength capable of killing cultivators at the Fish-Dragon Ninth Transformation.
The City-Breaking Giant Axe in the Refined Artifact Warrior's hands was also a formidable weapon, as heavy as a small mountain. Even if placed lightly on the ground, it could create a pit several meters deep.
The Ministry of War had named it the "City-Breaking Giant Axe" because a single strike could simultaneously break through a city's defensive formation and its walls.
With the Refined Artifact Warrior's strength and the weight of the City-Breaking Giant Axe, one could imagine the power of this strike.
If it struck Zhang Ruochen, even with the defense of the Meteor Invisibility Cloak, he would likely find it hard to escape death.
"Not good."
Zhang Ruochen sensed the powerful killing intent behind him and immediately released the gathered spatial power toward the rear.
With a sweep of his arm, he tore open a two-meter-long spatial rift, which collided with the City-Breaking Giant Axe swung by the Refined Artifact Warrior.
"Chi!"
The power of space was indestructible.
The City-Breaking Giant Axe split in two from the center of its blade edge. One piece of the axe head flew past Zhang Ruochen's head and, with a "bang," embedded itself in the stone door.
Then, Zhang Ruochen lowered his body and struck out with a palm, hitting the Refined Artifact Warrior's chest.
"Bang!"
The Refined Artifact Warrior flew backward, crashing into the distant stone wall, creating fine cracks, before falling to the ground with a loud thud.
At the same time, the other Refined Artifact Warrior swung its City-Breaking Giant Axe horizontally, aiming for Zhang Ruochen's waist.
Although the Refined Artifact Warrior's body was massive and the City-Breaking Giant Axe extremely heavy, its speed was astonishing. In an instant, the axe was upon Zhang Ruochen.
However, Zhang Ruochen had now broken through to the Fish-Dragon Sixth Transformation. With the enhancement of the Meteor Invisibility Cloak, even a First-Step Half-Saint might not be much faster than him, let alone a Refined Artifact Warrior.
"Shua!"
Zhang Ruochen sidestepped to the right, his body almost grazing the edge of the axe as he dodged.
He kicked off the wall, drew a Golden Snake Sacred Sword, and fixed his gaze on the Sacred Stone at the Refined Artifact Warrior's chest.
If he could pry out the Sacred Stone, the Refined Artifact Warrior would naturally lose its combat ability.
"Pa!"
As the Refined Artifact Warrior attacked again, Zhang Ruochen struck with precise accuracy, stabbing at the edge of the Sacred Stone and prying it out.
Behind him, the Refined Artifact Warrior that had been knocked away earlier punched toward the back of Zhang Ruochen's head.
Without turning around, Zhang Ruochen slapped the hilt of the Golden Snake Sacred Sword. The sword transformed into a golden streak of light, flying backward and striking the Sacred Stone on the other Refined Artifact Warrior's chest.
With the Sacred Stones lost, the two Refined Artifact Warriors emitted cracking sounds, instantly shrinking into two fist-sized black iron balls.
Zhang Ruochen collected the black iron balls, the City-Breaking Giant Axe, and the Sacred Stones into his Space Ring. These items were all treasures.
"The battle just now will surely alert the experts in the Heaven and Earth Altar. I must leave immediately."
Zhang Ruochen didn't dare delay and charged toward the stone door again.
"Break for me."
He slashed out a spatial rift, tearing a two-meter-wide crack in the stone door.
Even the formations on the door couldn't withstand the power of space.
Escaping through the stone door, Zhang Ruochen indeed arrived at the foot of Ancient God Mountain. Before him was a wide stone-paved road, lined with dozens of ancient carriages and barbarian beasts, carrying materials for constructing the altar.
"Who goes there?"
Six armored guards stood neatly on either side of the stone door, simultaneously drawing their swords.
Although Zhang Ruochen wore the Meteor Invisibility Cloak, his movement technique emitted some true qi, so the six guards detected him.
All six guards were Fish-Dragon Realm cultivators. In an instant, they leaped into the air and attacked Zhang Ruochen.
They each took a position, forming a combined attack formation. As sword qi surged, a sword qi array covering ten zhang in radius formed, descending toward Zhang Ruochen.
"Boom!"
Zhang Ruochen directly executed Sword One, swinging his sword and slashing forward, instantly breaking the combined attack formation.
The powerful sword qi pierced through the armor of the six guards, leaving dozens of bloody holes.
They cried out in pain, flew backward, and crashed to the ground, unable to stand.
Zhang Ruochen had shown restraint in that strike, only injuring them, not taking their lives.
"My apologies!"
Zhang Ruochen didn't linger. He activated his movement technique and rushed forward quickly.
After sprinting about six hundred meters, he entered a forest completely shrouded in white mist. Surrounding him were massive ancient trees over two meters in diameter, standing like giants in the fog.
"This should be the forbidden area at the foot of Ancient God Mountain, Kuiwu Forest."
It was said that Kuiwu Forest was perpetually covered in white mist, a dangerous ancient forest from which no cultivator who entered ever emerged alive.
Thus, the disciples of Liangyi Sect all dared not approach Kuiwu Forest.
Only now did Zhang Ruochen understand. It was because the entrance to the Heaven and Earth Altar was hidden deep within Kuiwu Forest that the area was designated a forbidden zone, with no one allowed to enter.
Xiao Hei poked his head out from Zhang Ruochen's sleeve, glanced outside, and his round cat eyes rolled around. "Something's off. This forest is set up with a very advanced illusion formation. It might take us a while to find our way out."
"The experts from the Heaven and Earth Altar will catch up soon. If we're trapped in Kuiwu Forest, it's as good as waiting to die," Zhang Ruochen said.
He was well aware that even staying an extra moment in Kuiwu Forest could mean capture.
Suddenly, a figure rushed over from a distance.
The speed this person displayed made even Zhang Ruochen feel inferior. A quick calculation told him that even if he fled with all his might, he wouldn't escape.
The figure emerged from the mist.
Zhang Ruochen finally saw his face clearly. It was the Sixth Sword Bearer of the Sword Pavilion, Qi Hong.
At this moment, Qi Hong wore a black tight-fitting suit. On the left side of his chest was a half-chi-long wound, which had severed two of his ribs. He was clearly seriously injured.
A ferocious smile appeared on Qi Hong's face. "Good lad, you managed to escape too. Not bad."
"Shua!"
Qi Hong moved swiftly, surging thick Sacred Qi from his palm as he reached out to grab Zhang Ruochen. (To be continued.)