Chapter 37: Southern Barbarian's Netherworld

  Su Jiao's gaze was calm and serene, silently sizing up the young man in front of her. Her expression was equally tranquil, making it impossible to discern what she was thinking.

  "Are you Chen Tang?" Half a beat later, Su Jiao slowly opened her mouth, her voice carrying a hint of condescending arrogance.

  Chen Xiao?

  As soon as this was said, the surrounding crowd was confused, and only those monks from Songyan City showed a hint of astonishment when they heard this name.

  In Songyue City, who doesn't know the great name of Chen Tai, the Sweeping Star?

  It was precisely because they knew this that when they saw Chen Xiao actually mixing with the young masters of several major families in Longyuan City, these people felt shocked.

  "My god, how did the Sweeping Star appear here? Isn't he just a useless piece of trash who only knows how to forge talismans? How can he also participate in the Nanman Mingyu trial?" Someone found it hard to believe.

  "Ah, I finally remembered! Earlier he was hiding behind Lord Tongmu's back. Everyone was captivated by Lord Tongmu's elegant demeanor, that's why we overlooked this guy." Someone took the opportunity to start flatteringly praising Tongmu Ze.

  "Unbelievable, Su Jiao is still waiting for someone, and the person she calls out by name can't be an ordinary person? Hey brothers, who exactly is this Chen Yu?" Those foreign cultivators were curious and began to inquire about Chen Yu's identity.

  "Haha, you're all too young, completely ignorant. Let me tell you, that Su girl was actually Chen Qian's fiancée back then, probably when Chen Qian was four years old..." Someone started recklessly describing the scene of Chen Qian's broken engagement.

  Listening to the surrounding hubbub of discussion, Chen Xiao remained silent and expressionless, his demeanor calm to the extreme, as if everything around him had nothing to do with him.

  "Huh? Sweeping Star? This can't be real, right?" Endo Akira said with feigned surprise, the jest and schadenfreude in his eyes obvious to anyone who wasn't blind.

  "Who would have thought that Su Niang had such a past with him."

  Always standing with his arms around his chest, Cang Bin suddenly glanced at Chen Tai, and a thick disdain and contempt appeared in his eyes. "But if I were to do it myself, I would never marry such a waste."

  Among the surrounding sneers and ridicule, Chen Tang stood up, his eyes fixed on Su Jiao, and suddenly said: "My grandfather's death has something to do with you?"

  "I..." Su Jiao was stunned for a moment, then her expression turned cold and she frowned: "Does your grandfather's death have anything to do with me?"

  "Dare to do but not dare to admit?" Chen continued to ask.

  Pressed by Chen's questioning, Su Jiao was furious and said word by word: "Do you think I would explain to a waste of a declining family like yours? You should understand that the engagement between our two families is no longer valid. Now even if I killed you, I wouldn't have to worry about any trouble. Do you get it?"

  Chen Xiao didn't say a word, and Su Jiao's eyes flashed with disdain. Her tone became even more arrogant: "Even if I killed your grandfather, what can you do to me with this little ability of yours?"

  "Remember, the weak will never have a say, a poor family background is congenital deficiency, mediocre ability is acquired deficiency, you have both, and still dare to talk to me like this, truly foolish and ridiculous."

  "Next time I see you, if you still dare to speak to me like that, I will definitely kill you!"

  After that, Su Jiao took Chang Yun and turned to leave. As she walked away, her delicate face still wore a serene smile, like a triumphant queen.

  "Sister Su, hand over that Chen Yao to me. I'll definitely refine him well until you're satisfied." A clear voice echoed from afar.

  "Li Huai's son has a good heart, but the Nanyue underworld is crucial, let's put other things aside for now."

  Li Hua?

  Chen Xiao suddenly raised her head and gazed at the handsome young man in the distant crowd, muttering to herself: "The eldest young master of the Li family? You're indeed in cahoots..."

  "Are you alright?" This was Du Qingxi's second time asking Chen Tang.

  Chen Xiao shook his head, his expression calm as usual. From childhood to now, he didn't know how many times he had been ridiculed and humiliated, Su Jiao's blow hadn't made him feel particularly wronged or angry.

  On the contrary, seeing Li Hua and Su Jiao together made him even more determined that Grandfather's death was absolutely related to the forces behind these two people!

  Du Qingxi didn't say more because Nanman Mingyu was about to appear.

  Buzz!

  A moment later, a strange ripple suddenly echoed around Ling Cang Lake. The originally calm lake surface seemed to have been thrown down with thousands of thunderbolts, rumbling and stirring up waves that were hundreds of feet high.

  Huge waves surged, like a hundred-meter-long water dragon swimming and roaring, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was suddenly stirred up in this violent fluctuation, the airflow flew and whistled, as if a hurricane had been stirred up.

  Splash!

  Everyone present was drawn in by the scene before their eyes.

  "The Southern Barbarian Dark Territory is about to appear, everyone retreat!"

  Just as the words fell, on Linghu Lake, hundreds of waves converged to form a massive whirlpool, spinning wildly.

  Almost simultaneously, a torrential suction force burst out of the whirlpool, and the spiritual energy within a hundred miles of Lingkong Lake was instantly swallowed up. The lush green grass and trees on the ground withered and turned yellow at a speed visible to the naked eye. A cultivator near the lake shore didn't have time to retreat and was instantly swept into the whirlpool, his body turning into a bloody mist that vanished in an instant.

  "Beware! Once sucked into the whirlpool, even a Two-Instrument Golden Elixir cultivator would be crushed to dust in an instant."

  In fact, without reminding, the crowd present had already retreated hundreds of feet after witnessing the scene just now, feeling that the whirlpool's suction power was no longer threatening, and only then did they stand firm with a lingering fear.

  Rumble!

  A deafening crash of thunder suddenly rang out in the sky, and a shocking scene appeared. Behind the huge whirlpool, the void seemed to be pinched by the hand of God, crumbling inch by inch, and a large black light rolled up into a 'door' that gradually took shape.

  As this 'gate' appeared, that terrifying suction also disappeared without a trace, and the world returned to normal.

  "Go!"

  A figure rushed ahead and violently stormed into the 'gate'.

  Others seeing this, where would they dare fall behind others, transformed into a black shadow, swarming towards that 'door'.

  "Qingxi sister, little sister will go ahead."

  Su Jiao turned back and laughed crisply, her white crane's feet shook its wings, and with a swish it disappeared into the "gate". Cang Ting and Li Huai stepped on their flying swords and followed suit.

  "Let's go in too. This gate leading to the Nanyuan Ming Domain will only appear for a moment, and next time it appears will be a month later."

  Soon after Su Jiao and her group left, Du Qingxi also led Chen Yao and three others into the 'door'.

  Buzz!

  A moment later, the area around Ling Cang Lake was empty, and the large 'door' above the lake suddenly disappeared, restoring the shattered void to its original state.

  Shua la!

  Just as the great 'gate' leading to Nanyuan Mingyu disappeared, by the side of Lingkong Lake, the void was torn apart like a piece of cloth, revealing a pair of slender and white hands.

  Right after that, a slender and tall young man in purple robes walked out of the void crack, stroking his chin and gazing at the Spirit Crag Lake with a thoughtful expression.

  The sunlight shone on his face, and the distinct features seemed to be finely carved, exceptionally handsome, with eyes like a lake, and two purple thunderbolts rotating in his pupils, adding a touch of mysterious aura to him.

  "Damn it! It turned out to be a desolate land living in the crack of space, I thought it was an unexplored small world, now it's all over, caught by those arrogant little girls..."

  A handsome young man in a purple robe showed a hint of regret on his face, and then suddenly realized something. His sword-like eyebrows rose sharply, and with a swishing sound, his figure vanished into thin air, as if he had evaporated into nothingness.

  "He's escaped again, that damned bastard!"

  With a loud crash, the void burst open, revealing a deep and mysterious passageway. A beautiful young girl with a slender figure stormed out, her eyes scanning the surroundings as if searching for something she couldn't find. She stomped her foot in frustration, then turned around and hastily retreated back into the void passageway without hesitation.

  In the depths of the Nanman forbidden area, within a range of 100,000 miles, in front of a cliff waterfall, ripples suddenly appeared in the void, and a tall and slender figure emerged from them. It was none other than the purple-robed young man from earlier.

  "Hmm, there are actually so many powerful demons... Hmm, it's not bad, hiding here for a while seems like a good choice too."

  As he spoke, the young man in purple robes stroked his chin, looked around, and stretched out his slender white right hand. He lightly grasped at the empty air, and suddenly a black python as thick as a water bucket appeared in his previously empty hand.

  This giant python has a blood-red small horn on its head, and its whole body is covered with layer upon layer of cloud-like scales. On the abdomen, there are four golden small claws.

  "Oh no, I'm about to be transformed into a dragon, what a pity! After cultivating for over 5,000 years, in the end, I'll still become nothing but food in your belly..."

  The youth in the purple robe smiled slyly, not paying any attention to the pleading look in the giant python's eyes. His five fingers exerted force, each one piercing into the python's head like sharp blades.

  Pong!

  The giant python's skull instantly turned into a bloody rain that poured down from the sky.

  The young man in the purple robe, with eyes like a purple whirlpool, slightly narrowed his eyes, and the corners of his mouth curled up into a knife-like arc. He tilted his head back, stuck out his scarlet tongue, and let the blood splash onto himself, indulging in this rough and bloody feast.

  ……

  Bang!

  Chen Tuo stood firm, and before he could even take in his surroundings, a black shadow rushed towards him. Without hesitation, he threw a punch that sent the shadow flying tens of feet away onto the ground.

  Roar!

  The dark shadow crept along the ground, letting out a reluctant scream.

  Chen Xiao only then saw clearly, this black shadow was actually a wild beast the size of a calf, with a ferocious face. Its entire body was as black as ink iron, its pupils were crimson like copper bells, emitting a fierce and cruel aura.

  Calamity beast? Is this the Nanyuan Underworld?

  Chen Yu looked around, only to see that the sky here was shrouded in a thick layer of lead-gray clouds, with a faint dark red color seeping through. The ground was covered with rocks and sand particles, and the biting wind howled by, sending sand and dust flying, dispersing like fog, making it impossible to see where the horizon lay.

  ——

  Gaokao, a united day, loving China, wishing high school students to be on the golden list and enter their ideal university!