With that said, his figure flickered, and he appeared before the black dog, extending a leg to stomp on its head.
Zhou Yan's foot, like a sharp blade, descended fiercely towards the black dog's head.
The black dog's body was directly split in two by this stomp, and blood sprayed out, splashing all around.
Zhou Yan took a deep breath, and then, dazzling golden light erupted from his body. Following this, a golden spear appeared in his palm, and he fiercely thrust it towards the remaining carcass.
"Puchi!"
A cloud of blood mist immediately burst from the black dog's carcass, and then, this blood mist condensed into a blood ball in mid-air.
Zhou Yan retracted the golden spear, beckoned, and collected the blood bead.
This was the black dog's blood, containing immense essence. After Zhou Yan absorbed this primal energy, his injuries instantly healed, and he even grew stronger.
"Hmph, a mere spirit beast at the ninth stage of Demon Emperor, daring to challenge this young master. This time, even if a celestial being came to save you, it would be useless!" Zhou Yan sneered.
Zhou Yan tossed the blood bead into his storage ring and turned to walk out of the valley.
Just as he took a few steps, the heavens and earth suddenly changed color, dark clouds gathered, and black mist churned, enveloping Zhou Yan like a giant net.
Seeing this, Zhou Yan's pupils contracted.
He felt that beneath this oppressive, dark sky, he was like one trapped in a quagmire, unable to move.
"These black clouds are so powerful that I can't move. Could this be the heavenly tribulation?" Zhou Yan mused inwardly.
He felt that these black clouds seemed to be able to restrain his movements.
"These black clouds should be a form of the legendary heavenly tribulation. I never expected them to be so potent," Zhou Yan murmured.
Immediately, with a thought, a black token appeared in his hand out of thin air.
On the black token, a giant dragon was carved, lifelike, as if a true dragon was roaring.
"This Black Dragon Token is actually a sacred artifact of the Dragon Tiger Sect? It seems the strength of the Dragon Tiger Sect is indeed extraordinary, possessing a sacred artifact. However, their strongest cultivation is only at the early stage of Demon Lord," Zhou Yan thought.
This Black Dragon Token was left by Zhou Yan's father, Zhou Wu, and Zhou Yan had always carried it with him.
Although the power of this Black Dragon Token was not great, it was a life-saving treasure.
Zhou Yan looked at the token, hesitated for a moment, then put it into his storage ring, and his figure vanished.
Seeing that Zhou Yan had disappeared, the black dog was taken aback.
"He, he actually ran away?" the black dog thought doubtfully.
"Hmph, when my master arrives, I'll see how you die!" the black dog said in a low growl.
Then, its scales began to shed slowly.
Soon, the black dog's body returned to a size similar to that of an ordinary wild boar.
The black dog's form shrank again, becoming the size of a common wild boar.
It looked at itself, almost not believing its eyes.
"What in the world is going on? How did I become like this just now?" the black dog wondered.
It had no idea what had happened, but now it was no longer worried about Zhou Yan dealing with it.
Because, here, its strength was completely weakened, and it had no ability to resist at all.
The black dog only needed to hide and wait for its master's rescue.
"Whatever, I'll find a place to hide and wait for my master's rescue. If he comes too late, I'll have no choice but to die!" the black dog thought.
With that, the black dog ran towards a nearby area.
After traversing the mountains for a long time, the black dog finally found a cave and burrowed inside.
Upon entering the cave, the black dog dared not move rashly, fearing it would attract Zhou Yan's attention.
"Master, I'm hiding inside the cave now. Please don't come to save me."
The black dog muttered softly within the cave.
What the black dog did not know was that Zhou Yan was hiding right beside it.
Not far from the black dog.
At this moment, Zhou Yan also noticed the cave, but he did not rush into it immediately.
After all, he was not yet sure if there was anyone else inside.
If there were others inside, wouldn't all his efforts be in vain?
Such a thing must not happen!
With this thought, Zhou Yan stood at the entrance of the cave, carefully observing the interior.
He found that the cave was not large, only a little over three meters high, and empty inside.
Moreover, the ground of the cave was completely dark, and nothing could be seen.
Zhou Yan observed for a long time, and after confirming that there was no danger in the cave, he slowly entered, closing the stone door of the cave behind him.
Inside the cave, it was pitch black.
Zhou Yan took out a jade slip, placed it in his hand, and then, the jade slip emitted a layer of light, illuminating the entire cave.
"So, this black lightning is actually formed by the convergence of a divine thunder known as 'Purple Extreme Thunder,' a heavenly tribulation."
"Purple Extreme Thunder is the lightning used by cultivators during their tribulation. This lightning can destroy all cultivators. Once a cultivator with insufficient cultivation encounters Purple Extreme Thunder, they will inevitably be reduced to ashes and disappear forever."
Zhou Yan marveled inwardly as he read the attributes of the Purple Extreme Thunder.
"This Purple Extreme Thunder is so terrifying. If I don't evade it, I might be struck dead."
"It seems I can only leave here for now."
With this thought, Zhou Yan's figure flickered, and he left the cave, appearing in another location.
At this new location, Zhou Yan stopped again.
He looked around and noticed that there were many demonic beasts nearby, all lying prostrate and trembling.
Seeing this, Zhou Yan shook his head and then re-entered a cave.
After entering the cave, Zhou Yan immediately removed a luminescent pearl embedded in the cave wall, then lit a candlestick and placed it on the ground.
As the candlestick burned, a warmth emanated from it, dispelling the darkness.
Zhou Yan looked around and began to sit in meditation.
Zhou Yan cultivated with his eyes closed for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn. At this point, Zhou Yan opened his eyes.
"It seems these demonic beasts are all afraid of the Purple Extreme Thunder. As long as I don't get close to them and don't touch the Purple Extreme Thunder, they won't attack me, so I am temporarily safe," Zhou Yan mused. He then stood up and began to walk around.
His first priority was to ascertain the size of this valley to find what he was looking for.
"This valley is quite desolate, and it looks like a human kingdom. However, the valley is filled with black trees, their branches looking like black charcoal," Zhou Yan observed his surroundings, his thoughts churning.
Then, Zhou Yan's figure flashed, and he ascended to the top of one of the black trees.
At the top of this tree stood an incomparably tall, towering tree.
Zhou Yan approached the base of the large tree and carefully examined it.
The trunk of the tree was covered with black patterns, resembling black snakes.