Chapter 1439: Chapter 1410: Sinking Leaf Swamp

“Is this Devil Ruin Mountain really formed by the fall of a powerful demonic path figure?” Li Chen couldn’t help but ask curiously.

“The legend says so.” Hujin nodded: “It is said that many years ago, Devil Ruin Mountain was just an ordinary mountain range. According to legend, a genius powerhouse from a Demonic Path Eight-Star Sect eventually fell here, forming the Devil Ruin Mountain.”

Hujin explained: “Nowadays, Devil Ruin Mountain is shrouded in demon fog all year round, and there are some extremely dangerous places, such as Storm Valley, where the storms are like sword light and blade light. Although the legend says there are treasures inside, ordinary martial artists can’t even get in, and the True Essence Protective Shield won’t last long.”

Li Chen nodded.

Since it is a legend, it could only be said to be half true and half false. He couldn’t fully believe it. However, since it’s said that Devil Ruin Mountain was formed by the fall of a powerhouse, there must be some basis for it.

“Brother Hu, I’d like to take a look at Devil Ruin Mountain; I wonder if you’d like to accompany me?” Li Chen asked.

“Well…” Hujin scratched his head: “Actually, Brother Lin, you didn’t have to say it; we were planning to go to Devil Ruin Mountain anyway. After all, the loose cultivators near here are almost all seeking cultivation resources in Devil Ruin Mountain. Though dangerous, it still contains some good things.”

Li Chen nodded: “Then let’s wait for Brother Hu’s friends to be ready, and we’ll go together.”

Upon hearing this, Hujin quickly nodded.

Putting aside Li Chen’s strength, just his identity as a Pill Master was enough for Hujin not to refuse.

After Hujin told his brothers about the situation, they all agreed. After all, with a Pill Master accompanying them, even if he couldn’t provide combat support, Li Chen wouldn’t just stand by if someone got injured, right?

Bringing a Pill Master might just be like carrying an extra life!

Li Chen didn’t think that much; he really wanted to experience Devil Ruin Mountain.

He was indeed eager to improve his cultivation, but he also understood the importance of fundamentals, knowing that cultivation doesn’t always equate to strength.

Going to Devil Ruin Mountain, he did want to see if there were any treasures, but likewise, he also wanted to temper himself through battle.

If Li Chen really went into closed-door cultivation alone, he might not notice much, but after learning about the cultivation paths of others, he realized that although he thought it was nothing, his cultivation speed was indeed a bit fast.

“Let’s take a look at Devil Ruin Mountain first.” Li Chen secretly decided.

Three days later, Li Chen gathered with Hujin and others, and to his surprise, found two additional females in the group.

“This is Junior Sister Yu Ge and Junior Sister Ba Meng, and this is…”

Before Hujin could finish, the two women giggled: “We know, this is Alchemist Lin.”

With that, the two women bowed gently to Li Chen: “This time going to Devil Ruin Mountain, we must rely on Alchemist Lin to take good care of us.”

Li Chen smiled, nodded, but said nothing more.

As for the others, he also got to know them through Hujin. One of them, whose cultivation faintly exceeded Hujin, was named Miao Donghua, and the other two men were Liu Chong and Xiong Yi.

“This time, let’s all take good care of each other,” Hujin said, nodding towards everyone.

Among the group, the highest cultivation was Hujin and Miao Donghua; both were at the Envy Heaven Realm’s early stage, which wasn’t weak even in the small Auspicious Clear Town.

The others, including Li Chen, were all at Mid-Heaven Realm Late Stage.

In such a small town, where even a good half were Earth-Level Warriors, this team was indeed quite formidable.

But Hujin reminded Li Chen that even they couldn’t be careless in Devil Ruin Mountain.

Because not only did people from surrounding towns enter Devil Ruin Mountain to search for treasures, but powerful figures from some cities would also often come.

After all, Devil Ruin Mountain has existed for so many years. Although the legend says a genius powerhouse from an Eight-Star Sect fell here, no one has ever found the treasure or inheritance of that fallen demonic path powerhouse.

One must know that the inheritance of a genius powerhouse from an Eight-Star Sect is significant, considering there are no Eight-Star Sects on the entire Earth Prison Star Continent.

“Everyone, pay attention, the Devil Ruin Mountain is ahead; the forest in front of it is shrouded in demon fog. Stay close to each other to avoid getting lost in the fog,” Hujin cautioned, arriving in front of a gray forest.

Of course, this was mainly said for Li Chen, since the others weren’t strangers to Devil Ruin Mountain and were familiar with the situations here.

But no one got careless, they all gathered closer, simultaneously propping up a True Essence Protective Shield, forming a small light circle covering everyone.

After all, even in the demon fog, there are Celestial Demon Beasts roaming, and those from Devil Ruin Mountain are more ferocious than elsewhere. Since the appearance of Devil Ruin Mountain, many martial artists have perished in the Magic Fog Forest.

Though getting lost is one reason, undeniably, they all ended up in the bellies of the Celestial Demon Beasts.

“Moo——”

“Hiss——”

Outside the light shield, came the roars of Celestial Demon Beasts, and the group turned vigilant, even Li Chen carefully took out a Spirit Long Blade and held it in his hand.

Red Moon is still undergoing metamorphosis, but it seems to be at the final stage, and in a few days, Red Moon will complete the metamorphosis. Even Li Chen himself is curious about what stage Red Moon will reach after this change.

Fortunately, the Magic Fog Forest is just the periphery of Devil Ruin Mountain, and the Celestial Demon Beasts are at most at the First to Second Level. They clearly sensed that these people were not to be trifled with and did not actively attack.

Two hours later, a group of people finally passed through the Magic Fog Forest.

“This is Devil Ruin Mountain.”

Li Chen looked at the majestic mountain range in front of him and couldn’t help but feel emotional.

The Heavenly Realm is indeed the Heavenly Realm; even a mountain range is so enormous. Li Chen glanced around, and Devil Ruin Mountain appeared vast and endless, with no end in sight, and he couldn’t tell how large it was.

“Let’s go inside!” Hujin reminded everyone.

“Brother Jin, which area are we exploring this time?” Yu Ge asked from the side.

“Let’s go to Sinking Leaf Swamp.” Hujin thought for a moment and said.

Among the group, Hujin evidently held quite a high level of authority, and upon hearing his decision, several people agreed in unison.

“What kind of place is Sinking Leaf Swamp?” Li Chen asked.

Hujin smiled and explained, “Sinking Leaf Swamp is considered a marshland, with many swamps inside, and these swamps are extremely terrifying. Legend has it that in the most horrible swamp, even a leaf falling on it would sink. That’s how it got its name, Sinking Leaf Swamp.”

“Isn’t that quite dangerous?” Li Chen wondered.

The others chuckled, while Hujin shook his head, “For us loose cultivators looking for cultivation resources, how can it not be dangerous? Besides, compared to the Storm Valley and some other terrifying places, Sinking Leaf Swamp is considered good. After all, as long as we’re careful not to step on the swamp and avoid ground vortexes, there’s generally no danger.”

“Ground vortex?”

“You’ll know when you get there, Alchemist Lin, let’s hurry on the road.” Miao Donghua urged from the side.

“Alright!”

The group sat on Li Chen’s flying spirit artifact, swiftly speeding in one direction.

“Alchemist Lin is truly wealthy and generous. If we were sitting on my flying fine instrument, it might take two or three days to reach Sinking Leaf Swamp. With this flying spirit artifact, it should take less than a day.” On the way, Hujin couldn’t help but smile and say.

The others looked at the flying spirit artifact beneath their feet, and couldn’t help but show a hint of envy. However, they simply felt envious, without showing any malicious intent.

“We’ve arrived.” Half a day later, a group of people arrived in front of a moist piece of land.

“It’s getting dark; let’s explore the surroundings first and enter tomorrow to avoid encountering Swamp Spiders,” Hujin took the initiative to speak.

Everyone agreed unanimously.

The Swamp Spider is a Second-Level Celestial Demon Beast that lives in marshlands and is even more stealthy at night. They didn’t want to deal with this troublesome celestial demon beast in the evening.

After resting for a night and adjusting their state, they proceeded deeper into Sinking Leaf Swamp.

Li Chen found it curious that quite a few spirit grasses were actually growing here. Although their grade was not high, it could be because people frequently came to seek treasures, so the nurturing time was not long.

“This place definitely has some interesting features.” Li Chen also collected two stalks of First-Grade Spirit Grass. Although it wasn’t much use to him, it certainly broadened his experiences.

“Looks like everyone has collected quite a bit.” Hujin saw the team’s expressions and smiled.

Just then, the ground suddenly trembled, and Hujin’s face suddenly changed.

“Be careful, it’s a ground vortex! Everyone, run fast!”

Almost instinctively, the group quickly ran crazily in the direction they came from, with Li Chen following behind.

Mid-run, Li Chen couldn’t help but look back.

He saw that where they had just stood, a whirlpool had suddenly appeared, collapsing into the ground.

And not just the area they stood, about a mile around them collapsed along with the emergence of the whirlpool.

Moreover, Li Chen faintly felt that at the center of this whirlpool, there was an attracting force.

Even though he had already escaped several miles away, he could still feel that terrifying suction.

It was evident that if they had stayed there moments earlier, even sitting on the flying spirit artifact would only lead them to be sucked inside.

“This is a ground vortex?” Li Chen secretly clicked his tongue, truly terrifying.

“Whew—” After escaping from Sinking Leaf Swamp, Hujin looked around to see everyone was present. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief, wiped the cold sweat, and said, “I was just saying hypothetically; didn’t expect to really encounter a ground vortex, what a close call.”

While everyone was resting, suddenly, Ba Meng’s jade slip flickered.

“Message Jade Slip?” Li Chen’s eyes lit up. This item, as he saw it, was like a satellite phone.

After putting down the jade slip, Ba Meng’s face cracked into a smile, “Everyone, I’ve discovered something good.”