A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality: Immortal Realm

Chapter 951: Different Intentions

E Kuai paid no heed to the change in the surrounding environment as he continued to lead the way forward as if he were taking a casual stroll. It didn't appear as if he were using any special techniques, but he was able to cover a distance of close to a thousand feet with every single step.

Mistress Liu Hua, Fu Jian, Qin Yuan, and Shao Ying were following along closely behind him, while Chen Yang, Sun Tu, and Han Li were trailing along a little further behind.

Everyone remained silent as they trudged through the forest, and the only sound that could be heard was that of their rustling footsteps.

Han Li took a glance at E Kuai, then communicated to Chen Yang and Sun Tu through voice transmission, "Is this restricted area really up ahead, Fellow Daoist Chen? Why does this rainforest look so strange?"

Not only was E Kuai tremendously powerful himself, he also had the likes of Qin Yuan, Fu Jian, and Shao Ying on his side, so Han Li and the others were at a massive disadvantage. Under these circumstances, they were forced to set aside their personal differences to work wholeheartedly together.

"I've only heard very little about the Great Ruins, so I don't know exactly where these so-called remains are supposed to be. However, judging from the increasing abundance of starpower in the air, we do indeed seem to be advancing deeper into the Great Ruins. In any case, you have a key right now, so we always have some leverage if E Kuai decides to turn on us," Chen Yang said.

Han Li nodded in response, but internally, he was still feeling rather apprehensive.

"Speaking of the key, there's something that I can't make sense of. According to City Lord E, five keys are required to access that restricted area, yet Fellow Daoist Li only has one, but City Lord E hasn't mentioned anything about searching for the other keys. Could it be that he's already gathered all of the remaining four keys?" Sun Tu speculated.

"Perhaps so," Han Li replied as he took a glance at Chen Yang, who didn't say anything.

"I wonder exactly how these keys are used. If City Lord E really does have all four of the remaining keys, and these keys are still useful after we enter the restricted area, then we would truly be at a severe disadvantage on all fronts, so we have to proceed with caution," Sun Tu continued.

This was something that Han Li had failed to consider, and if this were the case, then that really would be a cause for concern.

All the while, E Kuai continued to casually stroll forward, seemingly completely unbothered by the fact that Han Li and the others were intentionally lagging behind.

"City Lord E, it's clear that Chen Yang and Sun Tu are up to no good. On the surface, they seem to be obedient to you, but if you ask me, they're most likely already colluding with Puppet City to hatch some sinister plot. I think we should kill them right now so they don't get the chance to turn on us.

“With your powers, I'm sure you'll be able to kill Li Feiyu in an instant before he has a chance to destroy his key!" Fu Jian suggested through voice transmission as cold killing intent flashed through his eyes.

"There's no need for that, I trust Chen Yang and Sun Tu not to work with Puppet City. They're only behaving this way because they're apprehensive of me, which is inevitable, considering the situation that we're in," E Kuai replied with a faint smile.

"You're too tolerant and benevolent, City Lord E! It's clear that Chen Yang still harbors resentment toward you for what happened all those years ago, so you have to be wary of him!" Fu Jian insisted in an urgent manner.

"There's no need to worry, City Lord Fu, I know what I'm doing. Right now, it's best for us to maintain the peace. If we turn on one another now, that'll only be playing into Puppet City's hands," E Kuai replied.

Fu Jian could only fall silent upon hearing this.

With that, everyone continued onward, each absorbed in their own thoughts, and several more days passed by.

At this point, the group had already ventured quite deep into the rainforest.

The trees in this area had become extremely massive, and the smaller plants had gradually disappeared.

E Kuai had announced to everyone that the restricted area was not far up ahead, and that was a very encouraging declaration.

Han Li was trudging through the forest while inspecting his surroundings with furrowed brows when Shi Chuankong asked through voice transmission, "Is there something wrong, Fellow Daoist Li? You've been looking rather troubled for a while now."

"Something feels strange to me," Han Li replied.

"How so?" Shi Chuankong asked.

"Why is that despite the vast abundance of starpower in the Great Ruins, we haven't encountered any scaled beasts on the way here? Shouldn't this type of environment be perfectly suited to nurturing scaled beasts?" Han Li asked.

"Now that you mention it, that is indeed rather strange," Shi Chuankong replied with a nod.

"Forget it, there's no point in thinking about that now. According to E Kuai, the restricted area should be just up ahead. Will there really be a way to leave the Scalptia Spatial Domain further up ahead?" Han Li asked.

"Pokong wasn't the one who informed me of this. Instead, I gathered this information after browsing through all of the information on the Scalptia Spatial Domain that I could find in our imperial scripture library, so it should be reliable," Shi Chuankong replied.

"Rest assured, I do trust you, Fellow Daoist Shi, but this is a very important matter, so would you be able to elaborate further?" Han Li asked.

"I'm afraid I can't reveal any more information to you on this subject as it concerns a secret of our Night Sun Empire. However, I can swear a vow to the Baleful Holy Emperor that I'm telling you the truth," Shi Chuankong replied in a serious manner.

"In that case, I won't ask any more questions," Han Li replied with a nod, much to Shi Chuankong's relief.

The group continued onward for almost another day when a large cloud of crimson mist appeared up ahead.

The cloud of mist was extremely dense, and it spread as far as the eyes could see in all directions, standing in everyone's path like a crimson wall.

Furthermore, the cloud of mist was churning and rumbling incessantly, presenting a very peculiar sight to behold.

Everyone stopped in their tracks and peered into the crimson mist momentarily before collectively turning to E Kuai.

"There's no need to be concerned, everyone. This area is known as the Sulfurous Mist Sea, and we'll be able to see the restricted area once we pass through this place. Not only does the Sulfurous Mist Sea not pose any danger, this is here Sulfurous Flame Blood Clouds take shape, so if you're lucky, you may be able to encounter a cloud or two," E Kuai said as he continued onward without pause, and everyone's eyes instantly lit up slightly upon hearing this.

"Do you know about this place, Fellow Daoist Shi?" Han Li asked through voice transmission.

"I don't, but if this is the place where Sulfurous Flame Blood Cloud can be found, then this is a massive opportunity," Shi Chuankong replied as he peered into the crimson mist up ahead with an excited look in his eyes.

"Visibility is very limited in the mist sea, so take care not to get lost," E Kuai warned as he strode into the crimson mist, followed by everyone else.

As soon as Han Li stepped into the crimson mist, he instantly felt an enormous weight crash down upon him, as if he were walking on the seabed.

The crimson mist was extraordinarily heavy!

Han Li raised an eyebrow at this sudden change, but this amount of pressure wasn't enough to have much of an impact on him, so he continued onward without a hitch.

Inside the crimson mist, visibility was limited to less than two hundred feet, and the mist was also very restrictive on one's spiritual sense, limiting his spiritual sensory range to only around two hundred to three hundred feet.

The sea of mist seemed to be enormous, and even after walking for around fifteen minutes, there was still no end in sight.

Initially, everyone was feeling rather apprehensive, but after walking for a while, they encountered no danger, so they began to relax, and everyone spread out in a line to search for Sulfurous Flame Blood Clouds.

The only one who appeared to be disinterested in searching for Sulfurous Flame Blood Clouds was E Kuai, and this was a detail that didn't escape Han Li's attention.

The fact that E Kuai was so knowledgeable about the Great Ruins struck Han Li with a sense of unease.

"What are you doing, Fellow Daoist Li? I know your spiritual sense is particularly powerful, so you should put it to good use and search for Sulfurous Flame Blood Clouds as well," Shi Chuankong urged.

Han Li snapped back to his senses upon hearing this, then released his spiritual sense throughout the surrounding area.

The Sulfurous Flame Blood Cloud was a reward reserved for the top finisher in the Five City Martial Gathering, so it was naturally something that he also desired.

Right at this moment, Chen Yang suddenly shot forth in a certain direction, and Han Li hurriedly released his spiritual sense in that direction upon seeing this.

A burst of crimson light shot out of the mist up ahead before being caught in Chen Yang's grasp, revealing it to be a palm-sized gelatinous crimson cloud that was giving off a faint crimson glow.

Han Li was quite far away from Chen Yang, so he wasn't able to see him, but his spiritual sense instantly locked onto the blood cloud.

The cloud was giving off a burst of extremely potent energy fluctuations that encompassed both starpower and bloodline power, so this was undoubtedly a Sulfurous Flame Blood Cloud.

Everyone else had also sensed this, but seeing as the blood cloud had already fallen into Chen Yang's hands, they could only reluctantly accept this outcome.

There was an ecstatic look on Chen Yang's face as he immediately devoured the blood cloud whole, seemingly worried that someone would try to take it from him.

After swallowing the blood cloud, Chen Yang's entire body instantly began to glow with radiant crimson light, and in the blink of an eye, over a hundred profound acupoints had lit up over his body, seemingly in an involuntary fashion.

An alarmed look appeared on his face upon seeing this, and he hurriedly darted back to conceal himself within crimson mist.

Even though Chen Yang had acted quite quickly, Han Li's spiritual sensory range far exceeded that of everyone else, and before Chen Yang was able to back out of his spiritual sensory range, he was able to see that over 260 profound acupoints had already lit up over his body.