Chapter 1443: Chapter 1444: Taking Advantage of the Heavenly Tribulation
“There’s poison here!”
“We can’t stay here long!”
“We must have stepped into the territory of a Demonic Beast. The area has turned into a Poison Realm; retreat quickly!”
Jin Renchuan’s face changed dramatically, his silhouette flickered as he immediately dashed backward. The other inner sect disciples followed closely behind, not sparing a glance at Li Xiaobai and the others.
“Damn, they couldn’t be more obvious about using us as cannon fodder!”
Li Xiaobai cursed inwardly, they turned tail and ran at the slightest danger without even looking back, such heartlessness would make even a dog shake its head.
“Crap, there’s venom!”
“Senior Brother, help me!”
The other disciples scattered in terror upon seeing the scene unravel before them. Their ankles were stained with venom, turning them a shade of dark green. Witnessing the chaos in the field, Li Xiaobai simply took off his shirt and lay flat.
With fourfold defensive power, this amount of venom was nothing more than drizzle, incapable of causing any ripples.
The group hadn’t ventured too deep; usually, the venom wouldn’t harm anyone. But now, their cultivation level was entirely lost, and the only thing resisting the venom was their Physical Strength. Yet their bodies weren’t resilient to such an extent, unable to expel the poison, allowing it to spread freely.
The disciples followed the inner sect disciples out of the range of the dark green soil, their faces filled with fear and apprehension.
“There should be a formidable Demonic Beast guarding this area. Any place like this usually has an entrance to a treasure vault guarded by such beasts!”
“The paradise must be here, the Demonic Beast needs to be lured out!”
Jin Renchuan and the others murmured to themselves, gazing at the dark green soil.
“Senior… Senior Brother!”
“Looks like one’s dead!”
One disciple pointed tremblingly at the spot where Li Xiaobai lay.
How could someone be lying down after such a short time? Is the venom’s power that strong?
“No issue, according to the Elders, the Demonic Beast here shouldn’t have any cultivation realm, relying solely on Physical Strength. The venom likely originates from its Bloodline Power!”
“You go on, make some noise and lure that creature out. Senior Brother will help you!”
Jin Renchuan pat a few disciples on the shoulder, saying indifferently.
“Senior Brother, but this venom…”
Disciples’ faces filled with fear and unease, Li Xiaobai’s cultivation realm was similar to theirs, they all were in the Transcendent Realm. The man had already passed out, if they go in, wouldn’t they be courting death?
And to lure the Demonic Beast out?
They couldn’t even resist the venom, if the beast came out, would they have any hope of survival?
“What are you afraid of, go in assuredly, senior brothers will detoxify you later!”
Jin Renchuan showed a flash of impatience, waved his hand and pushed them in.
“I…”
At this moment, the cultivators awakened to the fact that they were being used as cannon fodder, as shields!
Outside, the inner sect disciples readied themselves, sent a punch into the air, and terrifying forces exploded, causing booming sounds from the distant ground.
“Lacking cultivation is indeed troublesome, relying on Bloodline Power to drive the body dulls the punching techniques considerably!”
Senior Disciples shook their heads in lament, this wasn’t the strength an Immortal Platform Realm cultivator should be displaying. The suppression of cultivators’ power in the 49th battleground was insane.
Just hope the venomous beast’s power isn’t too fearsome, otherwise they’d have to flee if they couldn’t withstand it.
“Roar!”
Just as a few pondered, a roar echoed from deep within the dark green soil, the recent bombardment successfully riled the Overlord of this territory.
A rhino, entirely dark green, emerged from the depths, spewing venomous breath from its mouth and intensifying the venom in the air due to its presence.
The Transcendent Realm cultivators within were swiftly enveloped by dark green layers, like stinking copper, covering their bodies.
Afterwards, without even a scream, they turned into thick liquid!
Li Xiaobai, lying on the ground, cursed wildly in his heart. These idiots had to lead the rhino to his location, but fortunately, it didn’t seem to notice him and stared intently at the few Immortal Platform Realm cultivators.
[Attribute Points + fifteen billion…]
[Attribute Points + eighteen billion…]
[Attribute Points + twenty billion…]
As the rhino approached, the values jumping on the system panel grew larger, but far from breaking through the defense.
“Kill!”
Upon seeing the rhino’s true form, Jin Renchuan and the others immediately attacked, their body energy surged, thick fur covered their surfaces, and their eyes turned crimson—a sign of using Bloodline Power to the limit.
A pair of furious giant hands made the first strike on the rhino’s body, causing a huge dent in its back. Meanwhile, the arms touching the rhino’s back rapidly turned a bizarre green, and the green painfully ascended at a terrifying pace.
“Damn, this rhino’s so fierce!”
“Slay it, its Bloodline Power could cure the venom!”
Jin Renchuan gritted his teeth, roared, led the group in another charge, engaging the rhino in battle. The rhino had no great Divine Skills, relying on its thick skin and venom to play a war of attrition, the group raced against time, aiming to kill the rhino in the shortest time possible.
The turbulent aura raged in the field, Li Xiaobai secretly opened one eye, quietly observing everything happening. Jin Renchuan and others gained the upper hand, the rhino began to falter, but the bunch didn’t fare any better, entirely turned green; if the venom wasn’t undone quickly, the consequence was becoming a pool of thick liquid.
A few breaths later, the stormy momentum in the field ceased.
Returned to calm.
The rhino was blown up, the Immortal Platform Realm’s Bloodline Power stretched fully, tearing the tough-skinned creature into pieces.
“Quick, extract the Bloodline, cleanse the venom!”
Jin Renchuan called out loudly.
But at this moment, within the dark green soil, a figure slowly stood up and walked toward their position.
“What is that!”
“It’s you!”
Upon close inspection, the disciple who had seemed dead resurrected!
“Were you feigning death earlier?”
“Brave of you, Senior Brother has important matters now, won’t argue with you, step aside, punishment comes later.”
Jin Renchuan’s face shifted dramatically upon seeing Li Xiaobai’s face, this guy had been secretly observing, now intending to benefit as a fisherman?
“Apologies, Senior Brothers!”
“I was curious, wanted to see what sort of creature it was. Surprisingly weak, you all are severely injured now; why not let me help you on the path forward!”
Li Xiaobai flicked his wrist, drawing out a longsword, and swung it at the few people before him.
In an instant, their knees weakened, and they fell to the ground, raising their hands above their heads in a gesture of reverent worship, their faces filled with bewilderment.
“What’s going on? My body is not under my control!”
“It’s him, he controlled our bodies, what kind of swordsmanship is this!”
“He can even suppress Bloodline Power. Who are you? You’ve been hiding your strength; you’re intentionally pretending to be weak to get close to me!”
“Who exactly are you?”
Jin Renchuan’s eyes flickered with fear, not because of Li Xiaobai’s power, but because they couldn’t receive the rhino’s Bloodline Power, and the poison within them was about to attack their hearts.
“The dead don’t need to know so much. Your wealth will be inherited by your little brother, who will live well with your share!”
Li Xiaobai said cheerfully. These people had lost their cultivation levels, making them easily subdued before him.
Theoretically, in this battlefield, the Barehanded Blade Catch is invincible. As long as cultivation is completely sealed, they cannot resist his onslaught.
“No, no, no, whatever you want, the brother will give you everything!”
“I’ll give you all my possessions, just stop. We’re all fellow disciples; there’s no need for this!”
“Yes, yes, whatever you want, just say the word, and my brother will give it to you!”
The few panicked, pleadingly.
“No need to do this, cultivation is a journey of deception and betrayal. Today, it’s just your bad luck to meet a more seasoned cultivator. The deceiver will always be deceived. Be at peace as you go!”
Li Xiaobai said calmly. As soon as he finished speaking, the bodies of the cultivators quickly rotted, turning into a puddle of thick liquid that splattered onto the ground.
Clearing out the Space Rings and Storage Bags left by the group, Li Xiaobai turned and headed deeper into the Poison Realm.
According to Jin Renchuan, there should be a Realm of Dead Souls inside here, and that dark green rhino was its guardian.
If there weren’t treasures accompanying it, it’s impossible for a Demonic Beast to remain in place for long.
Ignoring the surrounding toxins, Li Xiaobai walked directly to a door. The door appeared out of thin air, with no walls on either side, only poisonous vapors.
“Is this the Realm of Dead Souls?”
“Jin Renchuan mentioned that the most common Realm of Dead Souls is tower-shaped.”
Li Xiaobai muttered to himself, pushed open the door, and stepped inside.
The stench was overwhelming, the smell of death and decaying mold made one nauseous.
Could this place really have treasures?
The interior space was very different from what was imagined. It wasn’t a tower, but rather a small single-story house.
The room had complete furnishings, with a neatly folded quilt on the bed, though covered in dust.
Li Xiaobai wandered around but found no rare items, only some bottles of Elixirs on the table whose use was unclear.
“This Realm of Dead Souls is somewhat disappointing!”
“At least it could have some Rare Earth resources. Could it be that the rhino gobbled it all up?”
Li Xiaobai muttered to himself, searched the house carefully, and confirmed he found no suspicious items, so he gave up.
Leaving like this felt like a loss, so he knocked on the house’s door, which was incredibly hard. The material was likely valuable!
“Pack it up and take it with me!”
Li Xiaobai said without a second thought, exited the house, and promptly put the dark green door into his bag.
A thief should never leave empty-handed. Since there was nothing else, he’d take the door; if he could, he’d tear down the walls and carry them away, too.
It turned out his thinking was too far-fetched. The door was just a door; moving it didn’t allow him to carry the Realm of Dead Souls with him, as it’s fixed space born of a cultivator’s pre-death obsession.
“Let’s go find Bai Ge. That fellow is going to undergo Tribulation Crossing, and the first priority is to hitch a ride on the Heavenly Tribulation!”
Li Xiaobai took out an embroidered shoe, chanted some words, and then threw it into the air. The shoe fell, pointing its tip in a certain direction, and a golden war chariot manifested at his feet, rushing out without hesitation.
…
The journey was uneventful.
Aside from a few corpses lying by the roadside, he didn’t see any terrifying Demonic Beasts.
A little over half an hour later.
Li Xiaobai successfully found Bai Ge and the others.
This was a watery land, where several cultivators were resting by the riverbank.
“Thank you for your help, brothers. If I succeed in Tribulation Crossing today, I will surely repay generously!”
Bai Ge clasped his fists and bowed to the cultivators beside him.
“No need for thanks, we’re all family. When a Baihe family cousin is undergoing Tribulation Crossing, how can we, as family brothers, not lend a hand!”
“That’s right, although we didn’t expect the forty-ninth battlefield to have such rules. But that’s good, as Heavenly Tribulation is suppressed by battlefield forces. Many cultivators have proved this already!”
“I guess that within the forty-ninth battlefield, the power of the Heavenly Tribulation will be minimized, but you can only rely on Physical Strength to resist it. The increase and decrease balance out, and you don’t gain any advantage.”
An Inner Elite Disciple of the Baihe Family said.
The rules of the forty-ninth battlefield suppress all cultivation powers. This applies to both cultivators and the Heavenly Tribulation. As long as you prepare in advance, Tribulation Crossing will be quite easy.
“I understand, Senior!”
Bai Ge respectfully replied.
“Alright, enough talk, let’s start prepping. We’ve brought quite a few good things from the Academy this time!”
“Put it on to shield some of the forces!”
A Baihe Family cultivator took out a set of armor and equipped Bai Ge with it. It was a Magic Treasure, which when donned properly was adequate to handle the weakened version of the Heavenly Tribulation, even relying only on physical strength!
“This is a replica War God Armor. It’s more than sufficient to handle your Immortal Platform Realm’s Heavenly Tribulation!”
“Thank you, brother!”
Bai Ge was very excited. With the weakened Heavenly Tribulation and the protective armor, he was confident about this Tribulation Crossing!
“Let’s begin!”
The cultivators spread out, leaving Bai Ge alone in the field. With a slight communication of his Bloodline Power, frightening thunderbolts erupted from the blood-red sky, and fierce winds rose. His cultivation had been suppressed for too long, now just a hint of power could summon the Heavenly Tribulation.
What they didn’t know is that at that moment, another person was secretly observing them.
Li Xiaobai watched Bai Ge’s Heavenly Tribulation with relief, glad that he made it on time. A step later, he might have missed it.
“Let’s give it a bit more fuel!”
Li Xiaobai lay on the ground, gripping a golden talisman, activating it as a burst of golden light flashed, and in a moment, he vanished without a trace.
“Riding the Heavenly Tribulation!”