Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 545A – Final Glimmer

When the golden blood appears, the road of Sea Burial becomes one of absolute death. These were words known throughout the entire Holy Nether Guard which conjured the most terrifying image in the minds of countless people…without a single exception! Perhaps many of those who had witnessed this scene in the past had already passed away, but their fears had been passed down from generation to generation. When the first drop of golden blood appeared in everyone’s sight, all of Holy Nether City seemed to crash into a vacuum. All sounds instantly vanished, replaced by dead silence.

Wang Chao felt as if the old heavens was playing a great joke on him. In his despair, it had given him hope. But just as the sun was dawning, it had been extinguished. A strong psychological surge caused his entire consciousness to fall into a blurry state. Then, a strange anger erupted. This old thieving heavens, did it plan to play with him until he collapsed? Did it plan on playing with him until he gave in to despair? Fine, if you don’t want me to live, then I’ll let you watch me die!

Clenching his teeth in anger and with eyes flushed red, Wang Chao’s cultivation instantly erupted. But just as he was about to hurtle towards the road of Sea Burial, someone stopped him. If this were anyone else, perhaps Wang Chao might have bowled over them in his rage-filled haze, but the one who did so was Shang Yuntai.

“Old Shang, get out of the way!” Although they hadn’t known each other for long, the two men got along very well. Now they were already genuinely good friends. Moreover, from the depths of his heart, Wang Chao felt a deep admiration towards how Shang Yuntai was able to endure everything this past year and still give his all.

Shang Yuntai said in a low voice. “Old Wang, don’t lose your mind. If you rush forward now, not only will you not be able to help the Commander but you will make the situation even worse!”

Wang Chao mirthlessly smiled. “I indeed can’t help the Commander, but since old thieving heavens wants to play me to death, I might as well go along with its wishes…but before I die, I still have to struggle once or twice so that the thieving heavens can have some fun!” There was a bitter viciousness in his voice, one that made others believe without hesitation that he had already gone mad.

Shang Yuntai took a deep breath. He knew that he had to cut through this mess of a situation soon, otherwise this fellow Old Wang might not even recognize him.

“You bastard, you were the one who told me that the Commander can definitely succeed the throne of the Holy Monarch and gave me hope to continue living on, but now you don’t even believe yourself! Surname Wang, if you want to die then go find somewhere quiet and smash your head in, but if you dare to rush into the road of Sea Burial and harm the Commander, I will never forgive you!”

Shang Yuntai, who had been on the precipice of death, had experienced all sorts of tempering of the mind and had already reached a level where he could remain indifferent to almost anything. There was little that could cause his mood to swing about. So as he shouted at Wang Chao at this moment, Wang Chao was truly left stunned.

Wang Chao opened his eyes and tried to explain, “No…I don’t want to harm the Commander…I just...”

Shang Yuntai roared, “Shut up! Let me tell you that the Lord Commander will definitely succeed today. He won’t die here! His words were absolute, without any hesitation at all.”

Wang Chao’s lips moved as if he wanted to say something. In the end, he swallowed his words back down. Hua Yanting and Huang Shan finally regained their composure and a cry broke free from their throats as they grabbed onto Wang Chao and stubbornly held him down, shouting that he couldn’t be impulsive.

But when the two looked at Shang Yuntai, there was a slightly ill expression. Big brother had been a bit reckless, but weren’t your words too excessive? It was the same as publicly slapping him! Don’t forget who looked after you and dragged you back from death’s door! If not for our big brother you would have turned into a pile of ruined bones; how could you have lasted until the Commander helped you? You ungrateful bastard!

Shang Yuntai relaxed and he let out a breath of relief. When he sensed the gazes of the other two, he bitterly smiled. Besides this, he really didn’t have any way to stop Wang Chao. But none of that mattered. Once the Commander succeeded, they would understand that he didn’t ruin Wang Chao’s reputation but had saved him instead.

Looking up above their heads, everyone could clearly see the scene that Qin Yu and his group were experiencing right now. It was as if they could hear the roaring of the Endless Sea around them.

Shang Yuntai’s gaze was firm, without any wavering. The Lord Commander would definitely succeed! Perhaps in the entire Holy Nether City, only he was so confident at this moment. Not too far away from him, even the ordinarily cold and indifferent Liang Shou was sobbing in pain and grief with snot running down his nose.

Tuba and Tutou were similarly filled with pessimism and gloom. But, they had already readied themselves to protect His Highness at the cost of their own lives. So, they soon steadied their hearts. When they glanced at each other, they could see the resolve in each other’s hearts – it was time to die for His Highness!

The voices and faces of the friends and family they had in their tribe rapidly raced through their minds. But soon, they were forcefully suppressed. All that remained in their eyes was a cruel and crazy light.

“Die!”

With a loud roar, Tuba and Tutou’s bodies grew another foot taller. Their robes burst apart at the seams, revealing their rock-solid figures below. On the surface of their bronze skin, lines began to rapidly appear. They were simple and rough, releasing an infinitely wild aura.

Through the long history of the titan tribe, they had a special inheritance that was passed down amongst their people. Now, what Tuba and Tutou activated was a secret all-out technique of the titan tribe. By burning their bloodline, they forced their bodies to return back to the source, obtaining the terrifying strength that their ancestors once possessed in ancient times. In that moment, the two erupted with a tyrannical aura. Blazing, boiling, and wild blood energy fluctuations recklessly spread outwards. The two of them became like great blazing suns, causing one’s mind to tremble.

Hai Lanlan opened her eyes, a bit of helplessness and disappointment in her normally faint gaze. It seemed that she wouldn’t have a chance to see the outside world. She took a deep breath, preparing to summon the strength in her body. But then someone grabbed her hand and applied a bit of force. She looked up to see Qin Yu’s calm expression. “Rest first; it’s not your time yet.”

At this moment, Hai Lanlan was a little lost. Before she stepped into the road of Sea Burial, she had already prepared herself for the possibility of dying here. But when she saw the golden blood appear, she still instinctively felt a deep fear rise up in the depths of her heart. Qin Yu was the Commander of the Holy Nether Guard, and since he had already decided to rush through the road of Sea Burial, how could he not know about the significance of the golden blood? If so, how could he be so calm? Did he have some life-maintaining card in his hand?

But this thought vanished as soon as it appeared. This was because Hai Lanlan was well aware what sort of terrors would appear after the golden blood did. It was impossible for them to survive this. Still, she couldn’t deny that Qin Yu’s calmness had infected her. Or, perhaps it was her natural pride that made her unwilling to put on a frightened expression in the moments before her death.

Hai Lanlan closed her eyes. She knew that coming here was almost certain death, but since she promised her Uncle Fu Shan that she would protect Qin Yu, she would do so with the entirety of her strength.

A trace of cold determination emanated from her body. Qin Yu’s eyebrows rose for a moment.

This girl was obviously prepared to go all-out.

Qin Yu looked up. His gaze was deep and profound, as if his eyes pierced through the barriers of time and space, looking upon something unknown. There was a bit of wariness and thoughtfulness on his face, but there was no fear. But from the beginning, he knew that regardless of what happened today and how smoothly it went, he wouldn’t die here.

Undying’s awakening became a formidable life-maintaining card in his hand. Even in the road of Sea Burial, Qin Yu believed he had the ability to safely withdraw. And before he entered, he had asked Undying this and obtained a positive reply. As for Hai Lanlan, Tuba, and Tutou, he could use the Ninerealm Holy Land’s Saint Son Token to carry them away.

However, the reason Qin Yu rushed through the road of Sea Burial today was because he wanted to openly and honestly leave the Endless Sea and subsequently participate in the competition for the Holy Palace’s inheritance. Thus, unless it was a life or death moment, he wouldn’t ask Undying to do anything. Moreover, there was another card in his hand. Perhaps it might have a wondrous effect; it just wasn’t the time to use this card yet.

The monster beasts in the Endless Sea began to be drawn here by the golden blood. The depths of the Endless Sea that were filled with tumbling undercurrents now exploded like a boiling pot. Both familiar and strange monster beasts began to appear one after another, their eyes flushed red as they roared.

These monster beasts were incredibly powerful. In particular, after falling into a berserk condition, they didn’t fear death at all. But, Tuba and Tutou soon taught them that even if they didn’t fear death, that didn’t mean they wouldn’t die. Vast flowers of blood bloomed deep in the sea. Each one was preceded by a thunderous bang, as if thunder was striking deep in the sea.

Tuba and Tutou were human-shaped juggernauts. Every monster beast that tried to block their way was smashed into pieces.

In Holy Nether City, even those watching that were filled with despair couldn’t help but be shocked by the terrifying strength that the two titans erupted with. Only by witnessing the scene from the outside could one clearly see just how much dreadful killing potential was contained in every kick and punch.

Everyone seemed to suddenly think of the same thing. If these two terrifying fellows were placed against the Holy Nether Guard, could they stop them? In the end, they had no idea.

Fu Shan subconsciously gripped his fist, his eyes brightened. But in the next moment, the light was extinguished. This was because he knew that Tuba and Tutou didn’t truly possess such a formidable strength. If so, they must have erupted with some unusual taboo technique. And strength gained from such methods was impossible to maintain for a long time. Once these two people weakened, the situation would spiral out of control.

He swept his eyes around. Many Holy Nether Guards were leaning forward, their hands subconsciously clenched into fists. They clearly felt some hopeful expectations towards what might happen. But soon, they would discover that these hopeful expectations would become the deepest, most powerless despair.

Fu Shan’s thoughts raced. He hadn’t thought that Tuba and Tutou would possess such formidable eruption methods. If they didn’t encounter the golden blood, perhaps they really would have been able to rush through…thinking of this, his heart began to twitch in pain.

Could this be their fate? Could the Holy Nether Guard only be stranded in the Endless Sea forever, all their attempts to escape heartlessly crushed?