Standing at the bow, Lin Xin faced the wind and gazed towards the increasingly visible pitch-black fissure in the distance, which resembled a place where the sea and sky converge. The flat and gargantuan fissure constantly spewed countless black fogs, like the gaping maw of the Abyss, incessantly pulling and devouring massive amounts of clouds from the sea of clouds.
"Your physical body is very strong," Hongye’s voice echoed in his mind. "That’s why we’ve run into so trouble."
"What do you an?" Lin Xin, having frequently communicated with Hongye these days, seed to realize that it was a critical mont for the incision of the Underworld’s power.
"The Underworld seems to have taken a liking to you, so it does not want to let go. Not long ago, you happened to kill two Nascent Soul Soul Domain cultivators, their souls and wills rged with Essence Qi, were integrated into your body by the will of the Underworld, transforming into the mark of a Lord," Hongye explained indifferently. Despite such a significant turn of events, he maintained a calm tone.
"The mark of a Lord?" Lin Xin had long felt that sothing was amiss with this aura. He was surprised to hear this.
"But don’t worry, this thing is beneficial and harmless to you," continued Hongye. "Your physical body seems to have a special bloodline strength, a high resistance, and can resist the erosion of the Lord’s mark to so extent. At one of the places you’re headed to in the Outer Regions, there’s sothing I left there twenty thousand years ago. It’s a fusion of the will and Essence Qi you need. If you get it, it should strengthen and restore your body to a point where it can temporarily withstand the mark of a Lord."
A chill ran through Lin Xin’s heart. His greatest secret was his ability to transform Attributes, being able to absorb fusions of will and Essence Qi to strengthen himself—this was his true reliance for moving unhindered through the Underworld. Hongye seed to mistake it as so ancient bloodline.
However, this was just as well.
"What is it?" he asked.
"If you can get it, you’ll know," Hongye replied lightly. "Also, rember to protect Zhao Ke, the Demon Embryo he carries is very helpful to you."
"Demon Embryo..." Lin Xin discerned sothing from Hongye’s words.
The Void Ship slowly approached the massive pitch-black fissure.
All aboard were on edge, with no one knowing if the ship’s protective Barrier could withstand the rift’s tearing forces. If it couldn’t hold, it was likely that at least half of those present would die or be injured.
Yet Lin Xin just calmly looked at the fissure, his gaze aloof, seemingly lost in thought.
The wind grew stronger.
The ship drew closer.
Great swathes of tentacle-like black smoke flailed wildly, reaching towards the hull.
Boom!!
The entire Void Ship shuddered violently, seized by tendrils of black smoke and quickly dragged towards the fissure.
With a crisp gurgle, as if swallowed by so giant beast, the forefront of the Void Ship was enveloped in darkness and seed to plunge into a bottomless Abyss.
The people on board couldn’t help but let out cries of alarm.
Zhao Ke quickly scrambled out and returned to Lin Xin’s side, his gaze also intensely focused on the surrounding blackness.
"Brother, where are we now? Have we reached the Outer Regions?"
"Not yet," Lin Xin shook his head. "This is a special isolation layer en route to the Outer Regions, akin to a buffer zone. Although there is also a threat from monsters and the like, it is much safer than the true Outer Regions."
Before he finished speaking, everyone saw a sudden rush of white light ahead.
The entire Void Ship, as if swallowed by sothing, surged into that radiance, and suddenly the view ahead beca startlingly clear.
The sky ahead was grey-white, the land barren and desolate, with ruined stone buildings and dead black trees everywhere.
In so places, there were writhing black things, puffing out pale yellow smoke from their maws.
But what shocked everyone the most was not these, but that the entire world was tilted.
"We’ve arrived... this is the place," Old Zhao from the crew narrowed his murky eyes further, as if recalling a scene he had experienced many years ago.
"This place is...?" Captain Zhou Aifa’s dry pipe rolled on the deck, ignored by everyone while he just stared blankly at the sky, at the sloping land below.
"The Inclined Between," Old Zhao said gravely.
No one among the crew spoke; such a bizarre spectacle would strike awe into anyone seeing it for the first ti.
From above, Lin Xin surveyed everything below; the grey-black land was high on the left and low on the right, and with it, the entire sky was also higher on the left and lower on the right.
The entire Void Ship seed to be flying in a skewed space, creating a very odd sensation.
"Between the Outer Regions and the sunny mbrane, a naturally inclined spatial area forms, this is what’s known as the Inclined Between. The threats here are roughly only about half of the real Outer Regions, so it’s relatively safe.
At the sa ti, you can encounter monks who co out to hunt or undergo trials," explained Lin Xin softly to Zhao Ke and the others.
The Void Ship continued to fly forward slowly, while the sky around was not empty—large blotches like ink squird and floated high in the air, uncertain of their purpose. These black blotches, resembling dark clouds, seed to be living things, occasionally moving a short distance.
"So where are we headed now?" Zhao Ke quickly asked.
Lin Xin double-checked his location; he faintly felt that his perception and physique seed to have undergone subtle changes, presumably brought about by the mark of a Lord.
As the Secret Technique’s sensitivity unfolded, his eyes slowly lit up with specks of red fluorescence.
The world before him suddenly turned pitch black.
The only light in the surroundings ca from the previously squirming black spots, with red halos dancing about like flas.
"What is this...?" Lin Xin furrowed his brows slightly, "My Secret Technique sensitivity was originally only able to sense Demon Talisman Seeds that are useful to , but now... what’s going on?"
He could clearly feel that the large patches of darkness floating in the sky around him were inexplicably attracting him, as if they were so kind of edible food, emitting an enticing scent.
"The Lord’s imprint is just so," ca a voice different from Hongye’s, an entirely unfamiliar voice that drilled into his mind.
"Who are you?" asked Lin Xin lightly.
"Lord Hongye instructed to specifically address your concerns in all aspects. You may call Duan Wei," the man’s low voice said.
"We specially crafted a giant Magic Artifact using special craftsmanship, which can connect to your ntal senses from a great distance. From now on, you can communicate with anyti, anywhere. As long as I know and can answer, I will certainly hold nothing back," the man sincerely stated.
"Duan Wei?"
Lin Xin remained composed.
"You ntioned that the Lord’s imprint is just so, what do you an by that?"
A light chuckle ca from the other end.
"Lord Hongye is unaware, but the Lord’s imprint is higher-ranking than the Son of Underworld’s imprint, possessing more authority and abilities in the Underworld. The main one of which is to devour all things. To be precise, to devour things from the Myriad Realms, then serve as a bridge to channel them into the Underworld. As a reward, the will of the Underworld will feedback pure Lord’s Power to enhance the Lord’s strength. Compared to the Son of Underworld who can only hunt those with higher cultivation than themselves, a Lord is undoubtedly much stronger."
"And from ancient tis to the present, there have not been more than a hundred beings in the entire Underworld with Lord-level authorization. This ti, the will of the Underworld was pressured by the Sword Masters, which is why it instinctively gave out the imprint."
"What does this an?" Lin Xin’s gaze swept around him, but his attention was increasingly focused on the conversation with Duan Wei.
"What you don’t know, my Lord, is that the Lord’s imprint has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is naturally that there are no conditions like those for the Son of Underworld. It also enhances strength much faster. Although there are still many difficulties and hardships, this has also created the terrifying existence of Underworld’s Sword Master level."
Duan Wei sincerely sighed.
"The downside, however, is equally due to the increased authority of the powers, which beco stronger as well."
"What disadvantages?" Lin Xin’s heart tightened.
Duan Wei let out a long sigh.
"The first trouble is the overwhelming and powerful desire to devour. This devouring can indeed bring about rapid enhancent of strength, but if what is devoured cannot be channeled into the Underworld at the quickest speed, then the Lords will die from over-consumption, without leaving the slightest leftovers of their souls."
Lin Xin’s pupils shrank slightly. He suddenly understood the intention of the Underworld.
"It seems the Underworld’s will intentionally gave higher authority to prevent from getting away."
"Your guess is very correct, it is the result of the power struggle between the Sword Masters and the will of the Underworld," Duan Wei said respectfully.
"If the Sword Masters completely sever your connection with the Underworld, then the authority you possess will cause you to accumulate more and more devoured substances, until you are completely destroyed with no remains."
Lin Xin took a deep breath, and as he looked at the red flas tainted with the desire to feast, he suddenly lost any desire to take action.
He felt like a chess piece in the ga between Hongye and the Underworld, at their rcy, with his life hanging by a thread, in danger of dying without a place to bury him.
"However, you need not worry, the Sword Masters already have strategies in place, and in due ti, will give you sothing to completely suppress and resolve this issue.
You have ten days, in which ti the Sword Masters will completely sever your ties with the Underworld. My Lord, the forcing out of the Lord’s imprint ant that the Sword Masters had no choice but to act sooner. I would also like to remind you," Duan Wei’s tone slowly beca more solemn.
"The second trouble with the Lord’s imprint is the extrely potent side effects, which are far stronger than those from the ti of the Son of Underworld. If you cannot withstand them, you will also beco a walking corpse with your soul and will completely extinguished. So, you must be careful..."
Lin Xin nodded slightly, feeling Duan Wei’s voice gradually fade away, until that faint ntal connection disappeared completely. He then dispelled the Secret Technique.
"Big brother! Big brother?? What’s wrong with you?" Zhao Ke’s voice rang out beside his ear, sounding sowhat anxious.
"It’s nothing, I just lost myself in thought," Lin Xin returned to his senses and smiled faintly.
The Lord’s imprint...
He had an indescribable feeling.
He seed to be entering the easiest phase to enhance his strength in history. As long as he slaughtered, indiscriminate slaughter, he could enhance his own strength.
This was perhaps the so-called ability of the Lord’s imprint. It seed to hide many powers that Duan Wei hadn’t ntioned.
This imprint was not as simple as he had said.
Reviews
All reviews (0)