txolops Chapter 98 Battlefield of Kuixing Island
Chapter 98 Battlefield of Kuixing Island
The once bustling Kuixing Island has now become a desolate and chaotic battlefield.
Ever since the tenth-tier demon beast Lei Peng broke out of the formation and destroyed the island's protective array with his own body, the barrier separating the inner and outer star seas collapsed, and this once important human town was completely turned into a playground for demon beasts.
The island has long been deserted, with vines growing wildly among the ruins, and the once bustling streets now shrouded in a thick aura of evil and miasma.
Low-level monsters surged in like a tide, roaming freely through the ruins and vying for the remaining blood and resources.
The high-ranking demons perched atop the mountain peaks, overlooking this hunting ground.
Occasionally, unwilling Star Palace cultivators would form small teams to infiltrate and attempt to wipe out the demonic beasts, but they would often be besieged by an overwhelming tide of beasts as soon as they stepped onto the island.
The roars of spells and the howls of monsters rose and fell, and blood stained the scorched earth.
This place is no longer the fortified stronghold of the Star Palace, but a truly chaotic and perilous wilderness in the Star Sea, where the strong prey on the weak.
Han Xiaoliu activated his flight talisman, transforming into a streak of light and heading straight for the teleportation array on Kui Xing Island. The moment he sensed the coordinates of the teleportation point, he teleported without hesitation to the underground space of Kui Xing Island.
However, after he actually investigated the current situation of the place, an indescribable sense of heaviness welled up in his heart.
On this vast and cold land, he truly felt that "life in the cultivation world is like an ant."
In this world that mortals look up to, cultivators are high above, regarding all things as mere straw dogs.
The righteous and demonic paths frequently wage world-destroying sect wars in their struggle for spiritual veins, magical treasures, and resources. In the aftermath of these so-called "immortal methods," the lowest-ranking mortals are often the first to suffer, becoming food for fish and turtles, their lives as worthless as grass, their fates beyond their control.
The homes of those mortals were reduced to scorched earth in the battle. Their blood, tears, and wails were nothing more than insignificant dust in the eyes of cultivators, not even worthy of a glance from high-level cultivators.
This setting, which places the cruel laws of survival above everything else, sent a chill down Han Xiaoliu's spine.
This clashed violently with the core socialist values that he held dear deep in his heart.
In his ideals, society should be harmonious, equal, and friendly, every individual's life should be respected, the weak should be protected, and people should have a relationship of mutual help and love.
However, the world of "A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality" is an extremely selfish and brutal arena. Here, all emotions are submerged by the "icy water of selfish planning," and only naked exchanges of interests and the ruthless law of the jungle remain between people.
There is no absolute fairness, only the law of the jungle; there is no selfless goodwill, only compromise and calculation based on strength.
So-called morality and ethics appear pale and powerless in the face of the path to immortality and absolute power.
Faced with this extreme value system of cultivating immortality, Han Xiaoliu fell into deep thought.
The logic of the cultivation world is "the strong will always be strong." For the sake of personal transcendence, countless innocent lives can be sacrificed, and even fratricide is considered a matter of course.
His inner belief told him that true strength should not only be reflected in the level of cultivation, but also in the reverence for life and compassion for all living beings.
If the end result of cultivating immortality is becoming a heartless "cultivation machine," and if the price of ascension is completely abandoning the warmth of humanity, then what is the meaning of such "attainment"?
In this dark underground space, two completely different sets of values clashed fiercely in Han Xiaoliu's mind.
On one side is the cold, cruel, and survival-of-the-fittest iron law of cultivation; on the other side is the warm, steadfast, and people-oriented light of modern civilization.
He knew he was in a cruel world and might have to follow the rules of survival to protect himself, but deep in his soul, the warmth and bottom line of being a "human" would never be easily erased.
In this world of cultivation where all living beings are regarded as ants, he wants to find a path in his own way that can both protect himself and uphold the Great Dao in his heart.
Han Xiaoliu walked step by step toward the renovated stone chamber.
This place was originally just an ordinary cave dwelling, with only a few moonstones barely illuminating the walls, but now it seems to connect to the deepest abyss.
Before even approaching the stone gate, a bone-chilling cold aura, like a venomous snake, burrowed into every part of the body through the pores, causing even the protective spiritual light to emit a faint "crackling" sound, as if it were about to collapse under the strain.
Immediately afterwards, a chilling, piercing wail seeped out through the cracks in the heavy stone door.
It was not a single sound, but a desperate roar woven from thousands of resentful thoughts. They were mixed with the mortals' longing for their wives and children before their death and the unwilling curses of cultivators when they fell. They were transformed into tangible sound waves that violently struck Han Xiaoliu's consciousness.
He took a deep breath and suddenly pushed open the heavy stone door.
In an instant, a scene resembling a living hell unfolded before his eyes, bringing a devastating visual shock!
The spacious stone chamber was completely unrecognizable, replaced by a bottomless, enormous vortex of dark red and ghastly green – the Yin Gathering Array was operating wildly.
Within that eye of the formation, millions of ghosts were densely packed together, layer upon layer!
This was not a ghostly wandering in the ordinary sense, but a black ocean formed by resentment and corpses.
Countless pale faces, twisted to the extreme, rose and fell in the darkness. Some had only half a head left, some had gaping holes in their chests, and others retained the gruesome state of being pierced by sharp blades and burned by raging fire.
They were like scraps thrown into a meat grinder, mercilessly squeezed and rubbed together by the formation.
Millions of souls were forced to overlap and merge, forming a towering "Mountain of Resentful Bones".
The outermost remnant souls were still struggling in vain, stretching out illusory arms in an attempt to escape this cage; while the ghosts inside had long since had their minds refined, leaving only pairs of empty, scarlet eyes that blinked numbly with the pulse of the formation. The dense yin energy was as sticky as ink that could not be dissolved, and with each breath, it felt as if countless cold little hands were tearing at his lungs.
In this suffocating sea of death, there is no dignity, no reincarnation, only endless suffering and exploitation.
Looking at these innocent mortals and cultivators who perished in the battle of Kuixing Island, and seeing their miserable state of being unable to find peace even after death and becoming nourishment for others' cultivation, Han Xiaoliu felt a surge of blood rushing to his head.
Han Xiaoliu stood quietly in place, without saying a word.
He slowly raised his hand and took out that ancient and profound magical artifact—the Soul-Guiding Banner.
With a flick of his wrist, he slammed the banner into the ground, and forced out a wisp of pure spiritual energy from his fingertips, which, like a serpent, precisely struck the core of the Yin Gathering Array.
In an instant, something unexpected happened!
The countless vengeful spirits that were originally crowded in the formation and wailing incessantly seemed to have found an outlet, turning into a rolling black torrent that rushed wildly into the "Soul-Guiding Banner" along the formation's veins.
As a massive influx of resentment poured in, a series of crisp notification sounds rang in my mind:
"Ding! Detection indicates the host has absorbed a massive amount of souls, greatly enhancing your authority in the Underworld! Your current Underworld rank has been promoted to: Underworld Marshal! The power of the Yama's Decree has been increased!"
"Ding! Congratulations, host! The Soul-Guiding Banner has broken through to level ten, meeting the advancement requirements and is about to undergo transformation!"
As the last wisp of black energy was drawn away, the once bustling stone chamber instantly fell into a deathly silence, leaving only darkness.
Han Xiaoliu pulled out the Soul-Guiding Banner, turned around calmly, and left this hellish scene.
"Fight, fight, keep fighting." He chuckled inwardly, a hint of detachment in his eyes. "You fight for your territory, I'm just a spectator, I won't participate in this pointless slaughter."
Since we're in this cruel world of cultivation, we might as well enjoy the present moment.
He secretly planned for the future: while others were struggling on the brink of life and death, he should seize the opportunity to make a little money; once he had saved enough spirit stones, he would find a stunning beauty to dance and entertain, and also find a few attentive maids to serve him, and take a few beautiful wives. Wouldn't that be wonderful?
As his thoughts drifted away, Han Xiaoliu's eyes flickered slightly, and a touch of tenderness welled up in his heart: "Sigh, I wonder if Mei Ning has been born yet? And what about Song Yu Bao... Oh well, once we're settled, I'll have Xuan'er go and find out about them."
But wouldn't that be too beastly? Dong Xuan'er would beat him to death if she found out!
As a kind and innocent person, of course I could only keep it from her!