txolops Chapter 305 Obtaining the Void Heaven Cauldron
Chapter 305 Obtaining the Void Heaven Cauldron
"collapse--!"
A soft, yet clearly audible cracking sound rang out!
"Not good!" Wan Tianming's expression changed drastically, and he exclaimed in shock! One of the golden silkworms was exhausted and its golden silk broke, which meant that the traction formation composed of eight golden silkworms had a gap and the balance had been broken!
As the saying goes, misfortunes never come singly!
As if triggering a chain reaction, the moment the first golden silkworm was exhausted and its golden silk broke, the other seven golden orbs of light flickered violently and dimmed rapidly at almost the same time! The golden silkworms inside also seemed to have exhausted their last potential and energy, and their auras collectively plummeted!
The exhausted golden silkworms, along with the broken golden threads in their mouths, seemed to have lost all support. They were irresistibly pulled by the enormous suction and vortex of cold air emanating from the blue opening, rapidly plummeting into the bottomless, terrifying abyss that spewed eerie blue flames! In the blink of an eye, they vanished into the chilling blue light, their breath gone, their fate unknown.
All that remained on the altar was the large blue hole that still spewed terrifyingly cold air, and a few broken golden threads scattered around its edge, quickly covered in frost and devoid of their spirit. The bustling scene of people striving to retrieve the cauldron had instantly transformed into a deathly silence and icy chill.
"..." Wan Tianming, Tian Wuzi, and Mu Tengzi looked extremely pale and were trembling all over, whether from anger or cold, it was hard to tell.
They stared intently at the empty blue cave entrance, their eyes filled with resentment and anger. The golden silkworms, to whom they had poured countless efforts and placed their hopes, had collectively perished from exhaustion at the very moment of their mission's failure! The treasure hunt had been a complete failure!
"Hahaha!" The bearded man was stunned for a moment, then burst into deafening laughter that echoed across the empty Hanli Terrace, filled with schadenfreude and glee!
"Wan Tianming! Do you see that? It's fate! This is fate! Your few lousy silkworms couldn't withstand the weight of the Void Heaven Cauldron and the chill of the Azure Ice Flame! They exhausted their potential and ended their own lives! Hahaha, don't blame me for this! I didn't do anything!"
After laughing, the bearded man's expression hardened. He looked at Wan Tianming, whose face was ashen, and casually gestured for him to enter, his tone filled with undisguised mockery and dismissal:
"What? Sect Leader Wan, is your 'performance' over? Since you've failed to seize the cauldron, according to our previous 'agreement,' it's our turn now! This Hanli Terrace is now ours! Shouldn't you all be sensible and leave on your own? Or... do you want to stay and watch us retrieve the treasure?"
"You barbarian! You..." Wan Tianming trembled with rage, veins bulging on his forehead, and murderous intent almost bursting from his eyes! He clenched his fists tightly, as if he was about to fight to the death at any moment!
"Sect Leader Wan! Calm down!" Tian Wuzi rushed forward, grabbing Wan Tianming's arm and urgently transmitting his voice, his tone filled with helplessness and rationality. "Things have come to this point, there's no point in fighting anymore! The Golden Silkworm is dead, we no longer have the power to retrieve the treasure. Staying here is pointless except for a life-or-death struggle with Barbarian Beard and the others, resulting in mutual destruction! This time... we truly lacked the right opportunity!"
His gaze swept over the bearded man and the others, then looked at the bottomless blue cave entrance. He sighed and continued to transmit his voice: "The air here is incredibly cold, and there's also the threat of the Dry Blue Ice Flame. It's not advisable to stay here any longer. Perhaps... we should retreat for now and reconsider our options."
Wan Tianming's chest heaved violently, his eyes shifting uncertainly. In the end, he said nothing, abruptly flicked his sleeve, no longer looking at anyone, and his figure transformed into a sharp golden light, fleeing swiftly towards the hole that the barbarian had torn open on his way here.
Seeing this, Tian Wuzi and Mu Tengzi dared not linger. They gave a cold bow to Man Huzi and the others, and followed closely behind Wan Tianming, transforming into two streaks of light and quickly disappearing outside the cave entrance.
In the blink of an eye, all three Nascent Soul cultivators from the righteous path had departed.
At the top of Hanlitai, only three Nascent Soul cultivators of the demonic path—Barbarian Beard, Ancestor Jiyin, and Qingyi Hermit—remained, along with four Core Formation cultivators: Luo Ming, Han Li, Xuan Gu, and Wu Chou.
"Haha! They knew what was good for them!" The bearded man was smug, waving his hand. "Alright, the troublesome flies have all flown away! Now it's our turn to make our move!"
His gaze was fixed intently on the large blue hole spewing forth dry blue ice flames, his eyes filled with greed and a determination to possess it.
Just as the three—Barbarian Beard, Ancestor of Extreme Yin, and Hermit of Qingyi—focused their burning, greedy, and expectant gazes on Han Li, preparing him to release the Blood Jade Spider and begin the real treasure-hunting operation...
Outside the Cold Li Terrace, Wan Tianming, Tian Wuzi, and Mu Tengzi had already transformed into three sharp streaks of light, flying away from this icy and desolate area at an extremely fast speed without looking back, rushing towards the entrance to the next level.
Within the escaping light, Wan Tianming's face remained ashen, his eyes flashing with cold light. He turned back and coldly glanced at the towering Hanli Terrace in the distance, at the group of strange birds that had just appeared, their bodies entirely grayish-blue, with sharp beaks and claws, and fierce eyes, as well as the two tall, refined corpses on the ground that exuded a sinister death aura, with shriveled skin and flickering eerie green flames in their eye sockets.
"Hmph! These old guys are quite cautious! Even after they left, they didn't forget to leave these methods to monitor us, as if they're afraid we'll come back for a surprise attack!" Wan Tianming snorted coldly, his tone full of disdain and anger.
Mu Tengzi, standing nearby, frowned slightly and said in a deep voice, "Senior Brother Wan, judging from this situation, Manhuzi and Jiyin seem to be very confident and determined to obtain the Void Heaven Cauldron."
"The fact that they let us leave so easily, even bringing those few Core Formation stage juniors with them into the core area, suggests... those juniors might possess some special methods capable of withstanding the Azure Ice Flame or aiding in treasure acquisition. We must be wary."
"Defense? How can we defend?" Tian Wuzi sighed and replied, "The Golden Silkworm is dead, and we've lost our greatest asset. If we return now, what can we do but fight them to the death and suffer heavy losses? It's not worth it."
A strange glint flashed in Wan Tianming's eyes, and a cold, confident smile curved his lips. He transmitted his voice to his two companions, keeping it extremely low so only the three of them could hear: "Don't worry, before leaving, I left a small 'contingency plan' on that Cold Li Terrace. As soon as they start taking the treasure, their every move will be detected by me!"
He paused, then continued, "As for those juniors... Hmph, even if they have some special methods, how much trouble can they cause? In the end, the competition will still be decided by strength! Let's retreat for now, and then we'll wait for the right opportunity to strike. Perhaps we can reap the benefits!"
"Sect Master Wan is brilliant!" Upon hearing this, both Mu Tengzi and Tian Wuzi's eyes lit up, and they felt much more at ease. It turned out that Wan Tianming had already laid a trap and was not truly willing to give up.
The three said no more, their speed undiminished, and flew swiftly towards the distant passage. They soon disappeared into the depths of the winding passage, seemingly having given up on the struggle for the Void Heaven Cauldron and slinking away in disgrace.
……
At the top of Hanlitai, on the altar.
"Those three old bastards, Wan Tianming, they really just left like that?" The Extreme Yin Ancestor withdrew his gaze from the distance, a hint of suspicion and confusion on his face. "Given Wan Tianming's temperament, after suffering such a huge loss, he could actually swallow his anger and leave so easily? This doesn't seem like his style. Could it be... a trap?"
He was naturally suspicious and always felt that things were going too smoothly, which seemed a bit off.
"It's always good to be cautious." Master Qingyi stroked his long beard, his brows furrowing slightly as he pondered, "Wan Tianming is a man of deep cunning, and we must be wary of him. Just in case, I'll have Qingji Bird chase them a little further away to see if they've really left, or if they're lurking nearby, waiting for an opportunity to strike."
As he spoke, he made hand seals and chanted incantations. A pale blue magic spell flew from his fingertips and shot towards the flock of blue thorn birds circling in the air outside the Cold Li Terrace.
"Hey——!"
The lead, slightly larger bluethornbird let out a sharp, clear cry, as if receiving a command. With a flap of its wings, it led seven or eight of its kind, transforming into several bluish-gray afterimages, and swiftly chased after the direction Wan Tianming and the others had left in! Clearly, it was going to conduct reconnaissance and surveillance over a longer distance.
After doing all this, Qingyi Jushi felt a little relieved and turned his gaze back to the large blue hole in the center of the altar.
"Alright, whether Wan Tianming is really leaving or not, as long as he's not in our way, that's fine!" The bearded man waved his hand impatiently, his gaze once again fixed intently on Han Li, urging him urgently:
"Han boy! What are you standing there for?! Release your Blood Jade Spider right now! Stop dawdling!"
The Yin Ancestor immediately suppressed his doubts, a seemingly "kind" but actually anxious smile spreading across his face, and said to Han Li:
"My good disciple, now is the time for you to show your skills and make a difference! Quickly, release your Blood Jade Spider! In a moment, let it join forces with the exotic fire python that I have carefully nurtured, along with Luo's two snow silkworms, to pull the Void Heaven Cauldron together! With the Blood Jade Spider as the main force, and the fire python and snow silkworms assisting from the side, the chances of success this time will be extremely high!"
"The Blood Jade Spider... it's finally going to come in handy." Both the bearded man and the Qingyi Hermit looked on with anticipation.
"Yes!" Han Li replied calmly, as if he had expected this to happen. Without further hesitation, he reached out and patted the spirit beast pouch at his waist.
A blood-red, crystal-clear spirit beast flew out of the bag and landed on the ground. It quickly grew larger and transformed into a giant spider the size of a millstone, with a blood-red body, strange silver patterns on its back, eight long legs like blood-red crystal pillars, and an aura of ferocity and coldness—it was the Blood Jade Spider!
"Excellent! It truly is a Blood Jade Spider! Its aura is pure, and it's brimming with spirituality!" A flash of greed crossed the Extreme Yin Ancestor's eyes as he praised repeatedly, "My good disciple, you've raised it well!"
Manhuzi and Qingyi nodded slightly, showing their satisfaction.
Luo Ming followed suit and released two snow silkworms. The two little guys were very excited as soon as they came out, greedily absorbing the surrounding frigid air.
"Without further ado, let's approach the altar and prepare to begin!"
The bearded man glanced at Luo Ming's snow silkworm, nodded slowly, then waved his hand and took the lead, walking towards the large blue hole in the center of the altar that spewed forth eerie blue flames and chilling air. The Yin Ancestor and Qingyi Hermit followed closely behind.
Luo Ming and Han Li had no choice but to follow, since they still needed their spirit beasts to help.
As the group approached the chilling blue opening, the Void Cauldron had fallen back to its lowest point due to the previous failure of the Golden Silkworm's pull. Although the dry blue ice flames and cold air gushing from the opening were still terrifying, they were significantly weaker than the cold wave turmoil caused when the Golden Silkworm pulled with all its might.
The exciting chapter "Chapter 305: Obtaining the Void Heaven Cauldron" is now available online. Click to read it now!